


Winter Prompts!

by Pinkwebby



Series: Spencer Hawke AU [2]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Smut, Established Relationship, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Frottage, Multi, Oral Sex, Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-03
Updated: 2017-01-03
Packaged: 2018-09-06 04:23:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 25
Words: 40,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8734762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pinkwebby/pseuds/Pinkwebby
Summary: 24 days of Winter/Christmas prompts for your enjoyment!





	1. First Snow

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there! I'm writing winter/Christmas prompts for December! If you wish to join in, here is the post from Tumblr! [Yee!](http://acaranna.tumblr.com/post/152658760516/winterchristmas-prompts-or-a-little-calendar)
> 
> And some of these chapters contain spoilers for My Life in a Nutshell, so yee have been warned!

### Chapter One: _First Snow_

Hawke really wasn’t sure what time it was, but he knew one thing for sure. Havoc was barking up a storm. He was roused the first few times she boofed, but he drifted back to sleep after a moment. Soon though, she wouldn’t stop barking.

“I think that’s your dog,” He heard Anders’ mutter against his side.

“I thought we had shared custody,” Spencer replied with a huge yawn.

“Not when she’s screeching like a banshee at-“ He paused, probably looking at his phone, “Six in the morning.”

“So, you’re going to make me get up out of this warm ass bed and tell my dog to shut up?” Hawke questioned, cracking open an eye to peer over at Anders.

He didn’t expect his boyfriend to look as awake as he did, but when he looked over, he saw that Anders was sitting up on his elbow to glare down at a relaxed Hawke. Spencer pursed his lips to keep from smiling, noticing how disheveled Anders looked.

“Yes, I’m expecting you to control your dog. I barely got any sleep last night,” Anders grumbled, rolling over to face away from Spencer.

Hawke got on his side and leaned over Anders’ form, planting a wet kiss on his cheek, “Who’s fault is that?”

“Yours,” He mumbled as Hawke was sliding out of bed. Spencer chuckled and stared at him for a few moments, admiring the view of Anders’ bare back as his boyfriend rolled to lay on his stomach.

“Stop staring at me and go get your stupid dog,” Anders mumbled in between the pillows.

With one last longing look, Spencer went out into the living room where Havoc was still howling up a storm. She was on the worn couch, her snout pressed up against the window.

“What are you doing, old girl? It’s too early for this,” He went up to her, petting her head. She looked up at him, whining a couple of times before going back to looking out the window.

“Is that pit-bull teasing you once again?” He questioned his pooch, pressing his face to the glass and peering outside.

It wasn’t the pit-bull who always teased Havoc with the ginormous bones his owners gave him, it was in fact snow. It was snowing! Spencer almost squealed in delight, until he realized Anders was in the next room trying to sleep. He jumped on the balls of his feet a couple of times, pressing his hands to the glass.

It hadn’t snow since last December, and Hawke was ecstatic to see it was once again snowing around the same time. He tried to think of what he was doing last year at this time, and he realized that was when he and Anders first met. With the giddiness of that thought, he ran back to the bedroom. Anders was still in the same position, except his breathing was more relaxed. Hawke went over to his boyfriend’s bedside and kneeled next to it.

“Anders, love, are you awake?” He whispered excitedly, reaching forward, and rubbing Anders’ back a couple times. The man stirred, turning over to stare at Hawke with narrowed eyes.

“I am now, once again,” He yawned and opened his eyes wider to scowl at Hawke.

“I’m sorry, but you have to come see, right now,” He urged, leaning forward to put his chin on the edge of the bed and giving his boyfriend his best puppy dog eyes.

Anders didn’t seem convinced, and Spencer cursed himself for not being able to do puppy eyes when he actually wanted too. 

“What exactly is out in the living room?” He questioned cautiously, sitting up and scrubbing at his messy bed head which Hawke adored.

“It’s a surprise, c’mon!” He whined, getting up and smiling at Anders.

The man watched Spencer for a few seconds, before swinging his legs out of the bed.

“If this surprise is like the last one-“

“You can’t tell me you didn’t like it,” Hawke interrupted him quickly with a smug grin.

“Love, your dick is never a surprise, it’s always there,” He pointed out, but his cheeks were turning red.

“Well then, I guess I’ll put my pants on then when I show you the surprise!” Hawke said with fake outrage.

“Oh no, how will I ever survive?” Anders rolled his eyes and stood up, revealing his wondrous naked body.

Hawke slipped into his discarded pajama pants while Anders pulled on his robe, to much of Spencer’s disappointment.

He forgot the disappointment as soon as they got out into the living room, the giddiness of before coming back. Havoc was still staring out the window, and Hawke had to shoo her away so Anders and him could fit together in front of it. The snow was now coming down harder and in big fat flakes.

“Is this the surprise, love?” Anders questioned with a confused voice. Hawke reached over and gently pulled his boyfriend towards his body.

“I wanted you to see it was snowing!” Hawke declared, glancing down to see Anders’ reaction. The man didn’t seem very impressed with the fact, and when he noticed Spencer’s slightly crestfallen face, he quickly explained.

“When I was a child, I lived in the mountains, so it snowed a lot around there. I’m just used to it by now,” He gave Hawke a smile and wrapped his arm around his lover’s waist.

“You know it was snowing when we first met,” Hawke murmured in a low voice, a smile dangling at the corner of his lips.

“We were in a job interview; how could you possibly know it was snowing then?” Anders shivered as Spencer’s hand descended past his waist and towards his ass.

“I saw the snow before I went in. Maker’s breath, Anders, I’m trying to be romantic,” Hawke exclaimed in slight annoyance, his hand finally far enough to grip Anders’ ass.

Anders let out a tiny gasp, which wasn’t missed by his boyfriend. Spencer leaned in and kissed his jaw, trailing kisses up and down his face, but not pressing them to the other’s lips once. 

“Kiss me,” Anders growled out, hands scrambling to grab Hawke’s face. Spencer chuckled softly and moved in front of his boyfriend, Anders immediately pressing Hawke against the glass of the window and locking their lips. Anders could already feel the erection in Spencer’s pants pressing against his and he was acutely aware of the soreness of his hips from last night’s endeavors. But he didn’t care, he would take Hawke right here on the couch if he so pleased.

They were sadly interrupted by a loud bark that startled them both. Havoc was growling at something outside the other window, which caused Hawke to pause in the exploration of Anders’ mouth to glance over at the dog. Anders almost whined at the loss of the heat against his lips, but thought maybe it was better he didn’t try to fuck his boyfriend on the couch with the dog literally sitting on it.

“I’ll go make some tea, love. Do you want anything?” Anders implored, stepping back from Hawke.

“Hot chocolate sounds nice. I want to watch the snow fall for a little while,” Spencer said with an unusual distant voice. It made Anders falter for a minute.

“It’s incredibly boring, let me tell you. It doesn’t dance, nor sing. It kind of just falls…from the sky,” Anders quipped, earning a snort from his lover.

“I want to watch it with you, Anders. It’s kind of a family tradition to watch the first snowfall of winter,” Spencer explained sheepishly.

Feeling touched, Anders reached forward and placed a gentle hand on Hawke’s arm, smiling fondly.

“Of course, I would be glad to watch the snow with you, Spencer.”

Spencer grinned from ear to ear, and he realized how much he truly loved Anders.

“Thank you, love.”


	2. Bird Houses and Feed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be doing only a couple of Fenris/Female Hawke chapters, this will be mostly about Anders/Male Hawke.

### Chapter Two: _Bird Houses and Feed_

“What are you doing up so early, Penelope?” She heard Fenris’ sleepy voice behind her, and she quickly crouched over her work, almost not wanting him to see the unfinished product.

“Oh, nothing! I was just, uh, building something!” She explained quickly, swallowing, and looking down the pathetic excuse for a bird house.

“Building ‘something’ isn’t very specific,” He retorted, coming closer to investigate. Hawke let out a sigh and stepped back so her boyfriend could get a closer look at her craft.

The wood wasn’t sawed very good, so it had jagged edges, and the whole thing was lopsided. The roof wasn’t staying on correctly and threatened to bring the whole bird house down. The hole she had put in as the door was only big enough to fit in an index finger. It was horrible, to say the least.

And apparently Fenris found it extremely funny, because he started snickering. Penelope gasped a him in mock outrage and slapped his arm.

“I tried my best, love! You know I’m no good at making crafts!” Hawke pouted, putting out her hands to Fenris, who glanced over, “Just look at my hands!” 

Sure enough, her hands had scratches all over, and a few splinters were visible in her hand, just waiting to be plucked out.

“Why were you trying to build a birdhouse anyways?”

“The birds get cold too!”

Fenris let out a small sigh and took her hands in his, planting a kiss on each knuckle. 

“I’ll get the antiseptic, and then I’ll show you how to make a bird house,” He left the room.

Penelope felt excitedness start to grow in the pit of her stomach. Fenris was so good at building things it was sickening. Though she wanted to do it herself, she knew with Fenris’ help, the birds would love their new birdhouse. Maybe she could get some bird seed at the market tomorrow and feed them as well. After applying Neosporin to her hands and quite a few band-aids, Fenris went over to the little work station Hawke had made on their dining room table.

“You do know birds fly south for the winter,” He reminded her as he began to cut wood with precise hands.

“So do people, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t birds like you and me who like to stay in their homes all winter,” She responded, sitting down, and leaning forward on the table to drink up every muscle movement.

She loved the way his muscles rippled under the thermal shirt he was wearing, and the white tattoo flowing down his chin and into his shirt. He had a look of concentration as he split the wood and started sanding it with the unused sandpaper Hawke had bought but had no idea how to use.

“Is that what sandpaper is for? I thought maybe it was for decoration in the birdhouse,” She mused, tilting her head.

“I assume the clerk had to help you at Home Depot,” He teased, a grin playing at his lips.

“Not true! I found all this on my own!” She lied, trying to look innocent as Fenris’ piercing gaze flickered towards her.

“Carver called after you left and said you were planning something,” He told her, chuckling.

“Fucking Carver, always ruining my fun,” Penelope complained, throwing her arms across the table dramatically.

“Amatus, why don’t you come over and try to help me a little bit? You’re the one who wanted to build this birdhouse after all,” Fenris grunted.

With a groan, Penelope slipped out of her seat and hovered towards her lover, looking down at the pieces of wood he had cut out. They looked ten times better than what she had, and she was giddy to see what the birdhouse would look like in its true form.

“If you get in front of me, you can hold the pieces together while I glue them down,” Fenris murmured, stepping back slightly to make room for her.

She squeezed herself in front of her boyfriend, who proceeded to press against her back, his arms reaching in front of her to show her what pieces to hold together.

These were the times she was glad they were about the same height, as she felt Fenris’ chin gently nestle itself into the crook of her shoulder. 

They glued all the pieces together, and now they had to wait while they dried before she could paint them with the beautiful colors she picked out.

Penelope was opening the tiny cans of paint when she felt arms wrap around her from behind. She let herself be pulled back to the lithe frame of Fenris, who placed wet kisses down her neck. She giggled, being ticklish around her neck, she squirmed in his grip.

“We should go outside and see if any birds are around,” Fenris murmured against her neck, his breath hot.

She lit up, “Yes! You have wonderful ideas, love,” She turned around and planted a long kiss on his lips before dragging him to get their coats.

The first snow in Kirkwall was sometime in November, and now winter was in full blast. It was in freezing temperatures and snow laid freshly fallen on the ground, leaving a thick blanket. 

Adorned in her winter coat, boots, scarf, and gloves, Penelope crunched her way out their front door, Fenris following behind.

“If there are any, they are probably in the trees or something,” Hawke muttered thoughtfully, tapping her chin with her index finger.

“Penelope, look over here,” Fenris called in his gruff voice that she had come to love.

She craned her neck, before fulling turning towards his voice. He had his phone in his hand and he had apparently snapped a photo of her.

“What was that?!” She cried out, running over to him. She tried to snatch his phone away, but he had an iron grip and there was no way she could break it. So, she used her brute strength to her advantage, and she tackled him football player style.

With a surprised oomph, he went down with her on top. She planted both knees on either side of his hips and sat down. She scowled down at him, though she really wanted to laugh at his shocked expression.

“Give me your phone!” She commanded.

“You looked fine in the picture, amatus. I just wanted to have a picture of you in the snow,” He responded, a crooked smile on his lips. 

“You could’ve asked me too, I would’ve smiled and posed for it,” She exclaimed.

“That’s not what you look like naturally, Penelope. I love your natural look,” He replied.

“Stop being sappy, love, it doesn’t suit you,” She teased, finally breaking through her scowl to smile down at him.

Before she could get up, she heard a tweet. She quickly shushed Fenris and looked around for the source. On one of the tree branches was a gorgeous blue jay, preening at its feathers.

“Oh look, Fenris! It’s so beautiful,” She whispered in awe, leaning down to press her head to his chest.

“This is not the best place to go to sleep, can you get up off me now?” Fenris joked, his hand reaching up to card through her unruly red hair.

With a sigh, Penelope let her boyfriend up and dusted off his backside, making sure to give his ass extra care.

“The birdhouse is probably dry by now, are you ready to paint it?” Fenris questioned, tilting his head.

“Yes, and then we can put it out!” She said excitedly, turning, and heading towards the house.

Fenris watched her shake out her boots and shed her coat, before he turned his attention to his phone. The picture was one of those rare things. It was hard to catch the perfect natural picture of Penelope, she used to always have an artificial smile on her face, especially in photos. Now, he had one of her genuine smiles, the kind only he got to see.

“Are you coming slowpoke?” She yelled down at him.

“I’m coming,” He called back, shoving his phone in his pocket.


	3. Snowmen and Snowballs

### Chapter Three: _Snowmen and snowballs_

“What is this?” He heard Anders in the hallway.

“What’s what? I’m getting dressed,” Hawke called back, toweling his hair in front of the mirror.

“This,” He saw Anders through the mirror, who was holding up Hawke’s ragged winter coat.

“What does it look like? That’s my coat,” He pointed out, heading into the bedroom to get dressed.

Anders followed close behind, still holding up the jacket. Spencer glanced back at him as he picked out his boxers and slid them on.

“It’s old, love. You need to get a new coat or you’ll catch a cold,” Anders chided, throwing it onto the messed-up bed.

“Money was tight before now, Anders. That’s the only reason I’ve had this coat for a few years,” Hawke explained calmly, pawing through his long-sleeved shirts.

Anders reached over his boyfriend’s shoulder and pointed at a dark blue thermal shirt, nearly scaring Spencer half to death. With a quick peck on his cheek, Anders went back to the coat, examining it.

“Well, I think you need a new one. You have a steady salary and so do I,” He got down on his knees and pulled something out from under the bed, “So I got you this, because I definitely saw this coat earlier and thought you needed a new one.”

Hawke buttoned his jeans and turned towards Anders, who was holding out the thin box with a warm smile. 

“Love, you don’t need to buy me things unexpectedly. I could have bought myself a new jacket,” He said, taking the box uncertainly.

“Don’t be daft, I wanted to buy you this. Now hurry up and open it, I want to see it on you,” Anders urged him.

Inside the box was North Face black jacket, the fabric felt soft underneath Hawke’s touch. After a few moments of gawking at it, he stared up at Anders.

“You got me…North Face? You do know this jacket had to cost like 100 dollars!” He exclaimed, pulling it out to look at it fully.

“One hundred and twenty to be exact, love,” He corrected, another smile playing at his lips, “Try it on.”

“I don’t know, that jacket there I got from Goodwill for five dollars. I feel like if I wear this, I’ll just end up ruining it.”

“Why would you say that? It’s made to be worn, Spencer,” He chuckled.

“Have you seen me? I wear flipflops in the middle of winter! Look at that raggedy-ass jacket on the bed! Now think of this expensive jacket on me, something is bound to happen that will ruin it, then I’ll feel guilty I made you spend so much money on a coat,” He laid out his fears, before realizing how stupid they sounded.

Anders gave him a look, before reaching out and smoothing down Hawke’s wrinkled shirt, his hands warm, “Can’t you just accept my gift? I can spoil my boyfriend sometimes, can’t I?”

With a small nod, Spencer gave him a quick peck and said, “Thank you.”

He shrugged the jacket on and reveled in the thought of how nice it felt. The fabric was soft and pliable, unlike his old coat, and it kept warmth in. It also fit him perfectly. He zipped up the front and smiled over at Anders, posing.

“How do I look? Unbelievably gorgeous?”

“And also humble, don’t forget that,” Anders retorted, straightening out his collar.

“So, now that I have the proper attire, can we go outside?” Hawke practically begged. He had been trying to get Anders to go outside and play for the whole day yesterday, but he kept saying there wasn’t enough snow. Now though, it blanketed the ground, and when he took Havoc out, he was pleased to see it went all the way up to his knees.

“I really don’t like the cold, love,” He replied, running his fingers through his own hair.

Hawke stifled the urge to do the same to Anders’ hair. He loved it when his lover’s hair was down.

“It will only be for a little while! I promise you won’t turn into an Andercicle,” Spencer joked, earning a snort from Anders.

“I’m not worried about becoming a delicious summer treat, I’m worried about getting cold and wet outside,” He complained.

“You’re already a delicious summer treat, I could eat you any day,” Hawke purred.

“That was incredibly corny, Spencer,” He paused, a glimmer in his eyes, “But is that a promise?”

“If you go outside with me,” He replied.

“Deal. Let’s hurry up and go so I can come back in and take a hot bath,” Anders went out into the living room to put on his coat. Hawke did the same, putting on his boots, gloves, and a worn red scarf that smelled like Anders.

They took the stairs down into the lobby, before heading out into the snow. Spencer almost slipped on the ice that was on the outside stairs, kicking his poor boyfriend right in the ass.

“Ow! Dammit Spencer!” Anders glared back at the blushing man, who clambered down the three stairs quickly to his boyfriend’s side.

“I’m so sorry, love! You know how clumsy I am!” Hawke reached down and cupped Anders’ butt, who in turn yelped.

“I feel like you did it on purpose just so you could touch my ass,” Anders swatted his hand away as a couple passed, the couple giving them a weird look.

“I don’t need an excuse to touch the booty, maybe you just needed a swift kick in the ass,” Hawke retorted, waving awkwardly at the couple.

They started to walk faster, which made Spencer cringe and Anders burst out laughing. With a huff, he reached down and started to create a snowball quickly. Within a few moments, he chucked it at Anders. It hit him squarely in the chest and made him yelp once again.

With a shocked expression, Anders gaped at his boyfriend, before his face slid into a smirk, “You really want to play this game?”

“It’s a good reason to go outside,” Hawke countered, packing snow to make another snowball.

“Did I ever tell you,” Anders paused to collect snow from the ground, “That I played softball in high school?”

Spencer’s eyes widened to dinner plates and he froze in what he was doing, “No way,” He whispered.

“Four years, love,” He replied wickedly, aiming, and throwing the snowball adeptly. The snowball’s aim was true, smacking Spencer straight in shoulder.

With a screech that sounded very familiar to an actual hawk, Hawke pitched another snowball at Anders, barely missing his leg. And then he was off, running across the apartment’s front lawn so he couldn’t be hit as easily. It was stupid, in prospect, since Hawke wasn’t a very agile man.

Anders started laughing as he made another snowball, “You look like a bear trying to ice skate.”

Spencer scooped up some snow and pathetic tossed a snowball at Anders, though it hit him in the hip. Anders was a lot luckier, but also unlucky at the same time. He wasn’t sure what happened, but when his boyfriend ducked down to get more snow, he let his snowball fly. It hit Spencer right in the face full force. With a horrified gasp, Anders watched his boyfriend’s neck snap back and then he was down. He sprinted over, sliding onto his knees beside him.

“Spencer, love, are you ok?!” Anders dusted the snow off his face and assessed for any damage.

There was a cut above his eyebrow, and blood dribbled down into Hawke’s widened eyes.

“You got a good pitching arm,” Hawke finally rasped, to which Anders sighed in relief.

“That was revenge for kicking me in the butt,” Anders teased weakly, gently swiping the blood off Spencer’s forehead with his thumb.

“Thanks,” He grunted, sitting up. Anders’ gaze flicked towards the apartment door, “I think that’s enough with the snowballs. Are you ready to go inside now?”

“No, there was one more thing I wanted to do, if you don’t mind,” Spencer told him, standing up and dusting his front off.

“And what exactly is that?” Anders questioned, raising his eyebrows.

“Build a snowman, of course!” He exclaimed, giving his lover an incredulous look.

Anders wrinkled his nose, pulling his beanie further down on his head and watching as Spencer started rolling the base of the snowman. And all the while, singing ‘ _Do you want to build a Snowman?_ ’ from Frozen.

“Do you wanna build a snowman?” He crooned, glancing up at Anders with hopeful cerulean eyes.

With a slightly annoyed sigh, Anders walked over and helped his boyfriend roll up the second ball for the snowman.

“This is going to be the most beautiful snowman in the world,” Hawke crowed, picking up some small rocks and a couple of sticks.

“We don’t have a carrot for the nose,” Anders pointed out blatantly, to which Hawke pulled a button from his pocket.

“I took it off my old coat to use for Georgy!”

“You’re naming it Georgy?”

“It’s a nice name for a snowman!” Hawke reassured him, smiling happily. With that smile directed towards Anders, it was hard to be grumpy about being cold and wet from their recent snowball fight.

With the head placed on top, Hawke gave Anders the sticks to stab into the sides as arms. He did as he was told as the other man concentrated on putting the face together.

Anders watched fondly as Hawke stuck out his tongue, his attention on the snowman fully. Finally, the snowman was finished, and to be honest, it looked extremely silly.

“It looks wonderful, love,” Anders offered with a smile.

“Are you ready to go inside then? I think I accomplished everything I wanted to do today,” Hawke said, turning to grin at him.

“Yes, let’s get out of this nasty cold.”

“Yes sir.”

Hawke stole a quick kiss from Anders, before walking ahead to open the door.


	4. Going Sledding

### Chapter Four: _Going Sledding_

“Oh shit,” Hawke mumbled, looking down at the thing that fell out of his rarely used storage closet. He was getting out the Christmas decorations that Bethany had given him, and he was attacked by tinsel and this old slab of wood.

“Are you ok, love?” He heard Anders call, bringing him back to the present. With an excited breath, he abandoned the Christmas decorations and picked up the item, running into the living room.

Anders was in the kitchen, making himself a packet of ramen. Hawke threw the item over his head to show him. The man tilted his head, “What’s that?”

“It’s a sled, love! This was my sled from when I was a kid!” Spencer explained with a thrilled tone.

“I thought you were getting the Christmas decorations out,” Anders furrowed his eyebrows, turning to stir his food.

“I was, but then this thing hit me in the head and I got nostalgic,” He stared down at the sled fondly.

“Are you sure it didn’t give you a concussion and you’re hallucinating?” Anders questioned with an amused expression.

“If I were hallucinating, you would be naked and this would be a lot more sexier,” Spencer replied absent-mindedly, dusting the sled off with his hand.

“It can be, if you so desire,” Anders purred with a seductive tone.

“Anders, look, it’s still carved!” Hawke suddenly said, completely ignoring his boyfriend’s earlier statement.

“I’m cooking, dear,” Anders waved him off, slightly irritated that Hawke didn’t acknowledge his flirting.

“But my name is still carved into the wood, look!” He chirped, coming into the kitchen to show his lover. Anders was slurping up his oriental ramen like it was his last meal, probably because that’s what he had to do while working. Spencer bounced in front of him with a grand smile, pointing at a small carving at the bottom of the boogie-board shaped sled. It said Spencer Hawke in big, blocky letters.

“That doesn’t look like your handwriting,” Anders pointed out, swallowing down the hot food in his mouth.

Spencer sheepishly looked away from Anders’ gaze, his cheeks turning pink, “That’s because it’s not.”

“Then whose is it? An unknown ex-boyfriend I should be jealous about?” He teased Hawke, downing the ramen broth, and putting his bowl in the sink.

“No! Well…I haven’t used this sled since middle school, so I don’t think he really counted as a ‘boyfriend’,” Spencer said shyly, picking at some of the chipped wood on the sled.

“Oh, so to proclaim his love, he carved _your_ name into _your_ sled? How romantic. What was his name?” He poked fun at his boyfriend with a smirk.

Spencer puffed out his cheeks and pouted, “His name was Emile de Launcet, a red head who was sheltered most of his life.”

Anders wrinkled his nose at the name, remembering it from somewhere, but not able to put a finger on it. He reached forward and rubbed Hawke’s arm, examining the sled in his hands.

“Well, since you have the sled, why don’t we go out sledding then?” Anders finally implored, taking his boyfriend’s chin, and forcing him to look at him.

Spencer’s eyes widened and got a shimmer in them, “Really? You want to go sledding?”

“I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want to go, love,” Anders kissed him on the nose, running his fingers through Hawke’s coarse hair.

“It’s just…you said you don’t like the cold, I didn’t expect you to want to go without me begging,” Spencer responded, his eyebrows knitting together slightly.

“Though you know I do love when you beg, I just thought maybe going sledding with my boyfriend would be fun. I can deal with the cold for a little while,” Anders smiled.

“I know the perfect place to go sledding, let me go put on my coat!” Hawke shoved the sled into his boyfriend’s hands and practically sprinted to the coat closet.

“Please put on a shirt too, love!” Anders called after him, shaking his head and rolling his eyes.

Once they were dressed, Hawke gave Anders directions to the unknown place that was ‘perfect’ for sledding. Anders hadn’t lived in Kirkwall long enough to know all these things, and though Hawke did show him a lot of places, it was still hard to find where he was going. Hawke peered in the backseat at his old wooden sled with a giddy expression.

“There, right there!” Hawke pointed at a sign that said Kirkwall High School. Anders skeptically pulled into the parking lot, noticing the large hill that protruded in front of the school building. Kids of all ages were sledding down it, parents watching from the sidelines.

Anders got out, waiting while Hawke got the sled. Once the car was locked, they traveled over to where the parents stood. Most were talking among themselves while a few were helping the kids sled. Anders watched the parents uneasily, getting a slightly self-conscious feeling in the pit of his stomach. Spencer, on the other hand, was so eager to go sledding, he was bouncing on the balls on his feet like a child in a candy store.

One mother noticed them standing off to the side, so she walked over, her smile radiant as she took them both in. It gave Anders an off-putting vibe.

“Hello there! You must be new around here,” She put out her hand and shook their hands with a fierce grip, “My name is Veronica Salchow.”

“I’m Spencer Hawke, and this is my boyfriend, Anders,” Spencer introduced them both, his hand reaching out and intertwining with his boyfriend’s.

A look of surprise passed her face for a moment, but only Anders noticed it. The woman turned to look down at the kids sledding, then glanced back at them, “Which ones are yours?”

Anders took in too sharp of a breath, and ending up doubled over and coughing violently, scaring Spencer out of his skin.

“Oh ah, we don’t have any kids, we actually came out here to do some sledding ourselves,” Hawke explained, much to Anders relief and dismay.

Now the woman was shocked into complete silence, so Anders took the chance to drag Spencer away from the dreadful conversation, heading down the hill slightly. With a sigh, he let loose his tense shoulders and took off his beanie, redoing his ponytail.

“Are you ok, love? You sounded like a dying cat back there,” Hawke rubbed his lover’s back soothingly.

“I’m fine, she just caught me off guard, is all,” He straightened his back and rubbed his temples.

“So, are you ready to sled then?” Spencer asked excitedly, throwing down his sled and plopping down on it. Unfortunately, he had definitely outgrown it, his legs looked like they would go through his neck if he wasn’t careful, and he made Anders snicker at the sight.

“I don’t think we’ll both fit, besides that-“ Anders dipped his face down, “You can’t really expect me to sled with a bunch of kids! I feel so awkward, love.”

“Anders,” Hawke whined, turning those damn deep blue eyes towards him, “You said you would sled with me! Those kids are just having fun like we will! Don’t let those lame parents make you feel self-conscious, love.”

It seemed that his lover could read him better than he expected, and it made him falter. He huddled into his coat, shivering against the cold as he stared down at Spencer. Maker, could he really love this man any more than he already did? Though his antics were questionable and he could be clueless and childish, he was adorable.

“We’re going to get arrested as pedophiles, I hope you know,” Anders huffed, white fog puffing from his pink lips. He sat his butt on the sled behind Hawke, sliding his legs around Spencer’s hips snugly. He scooted his body as close to him as he could, wrapping his arm around the man’s stomach. He nuzzled Hawke’s back, shaking his head slightly.

“If you hold me any closer, we’ll be arrested for public indecency,” Spencer retorted, leaning into Anders’ touch. Anders snorted and moved the sled forward a little with his butt.

“Let’s go, love, you wanted to actually sled, right?” Anders murmured in his ear, putting his chin on Hawke’s shoulder.

“Alright, three-“ He didn’t make the rest of the countdown, because Anders pushed them forward with a wicked grin.

They went down the hill at lightning speed, much faster than Anders expected. The snow was probably more packed down for sledding, maybe even an icy layer over top making the slope slicker. Hawke shrieked like a little kid, and Anders was laughing loudly, his grip tightening on Spencer’s stomach. Anders’ hat almost flew off, and he barely caught it in time.

Finally, they came to a stop at the bottom of the hill, and Spencer rolled off the sled and laid limp in the snow belly-up. Anders stood up and picked the sled up, before moving towards his lover. 

“Was that fun?” Anders questioned with a big smile.

“I wasn’t expecting you to push the sled off before the countdown, love! I thought we were going to die,” He wailed, opening his eyes to look up at Anders.

“It would have been the same ride no matter what,” He paused, twisting the beanie in his hands, “Can we go again?”

Hawke lit up, scrambling up and taking the sled from his boyfriend.

“If that’s what you want to do, of course!”

Anders smiled at Spencer, reaching for his free, gloved hand, and giving it a light kiss.

“I want too, with you, Spencer Hawke.”


	5. Snowed In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this was rated explicit for a reason. I hope it isn't too bad. I gave it my all.  
> Updated the tags for this as well.
> 
> And I'm sorry I'm so behind, finals were happening, it was hectic. I'll try to steer myself back on schedule.

### Chapter Five: _Snowed in_

After their sledding adventure, Hawke and Anders went back to their apartment and Spencer immediately collapsed on the couch. At one point, he felt someone drape a blanket over him, but the next time he woke up, he had something heavy on top of him. He thought it was Havoc, 100%, so he started to push her off. Except, he felt soft, silky hair that did not belong to his dog. He cracked one eye open and looked down the length of his body.

What he found was his boyfriend, Anders, sprawled out on top of him like a feline, half of his face buried in Hawke’s chest. The blanket was on top of both of them, and it seemed Anders literally pulled the comforter off their bed. Hawke slipped his arm under Anders and dug through his pocket softly, fishing out his phone. Checking the time, his eyes widened.

“Love, wake up! We’re late for work!” Hawke shook Anders firmly, who in turn groaned and turned to look at his boyfriend.

Eyes opened to slits, Anders put his chin down on Spencer’s chest, using one of his hands to mess with Hawke’s chest hair with a drowsy smile.

“We don’t have work today, love. My boss called and told me the snow has most of the town covered. And there’s going to be a snowstorm later today. He’s using the staff who are at the hospital until the roads are cleared,” He murmured, before lowering his head again, probably to go back to sleep.

“Hold on, wait. You’re saying your boss, the man with a stick up his ass 24/7, gave us both the day off because of some snow? You’re joking.”

“If you don’t believe me, go check the window, you can see all the snow,” He paused, reaching up and stretching, “But not yet, let’s sleep a bit more.”

Hawke scooted out from under Anders, who let out small whimpers of protest, and finally made his way over to the window. He pressed his warm face to the cold glass and peered outside. With a small gasp, he stared in wonder at all the snow piled up. And he said there was going to be another snow storm? They were going to be trapped in here for at least a couple of days or more. Good thing they stocked up on food a couple of days prior.

“I told you it was bad, now, come back here and keep me warm,” Anders opened the blanket, showing off that he only had his pajama pants on. He was taking after his boyfriend in the shirtless department.

“I’m going to make some coffee; do you want anything?” Hawke scratched his stomach and ruffled his hair, watching his boyfriend.

“For you to come here,” He mumbled, rolling over.

“I only come when you ask nicely,” Spencer retorted, chuckling at his own pun.

“That can be arranged, don’t tempt me, Spencer Hawke,” Anders called as Spencer went into the kitchen to turn on the coffee pot.

“Tempting? Not me,” Spencer called back to him innocently, pressing the big red button on the coffee machine and watching it whirl to life to make his bean juice.

He stood in the kitchen while the coffee was being made, a little afraid to go back into the living room. Anders was being awfully quiet, and unless he was asleep, he was planning something. With a small sigh, he got down his Christmas mug and poured some coffee into it. Holding his breath, he went out into the living room. The first thing he noticed was that Anders was gone. He let out his breath and plopped down on the couch, sipping at his hot drink.

With a moments peace, he turned on the TV, hoping that maybe the snow didn’t interfere with the cable. His hopes were dashed when big red letters flashed onto the screen, telling him that the cable will be out until further notice. He frowned sadly and turned it off. Now he really didn’t have anything to do. The internet was connected to the cable, so it was probably not working as well. While he was wallowing in self-pity, he heard the shower turn on. Looks like Anders went to take a shower. He stretched himself out on the couch and stared out the window.

He sat like that for a couple of minutes, before he heard a whine. His eyes wandered down to Havoc, who nudged her nose against his outstretched hand.

“What, you wanna go outside old girl? I’m just letting you know you won’t want to pee in this weather,” He warned, scratching behind her ears. It appeared she didn’t understand a word he said though, only wagging her tail happily and snuffing at him.

He stood up to put on his jacket and boots, as well as clipping Havoc’s leash on. He went down the stairs and outside, letting the retractable leash do the work as Hawke didn’t really want to go down the outside stairs into the large piles of snow. Havoc had other ideas though, jumping face first into a snow pile. Spencer chuckled, crossing his arms and shivering. Anders was having a wonderful hot shower right now, and Hawke was outside letting his dog play in the snow. Who had the better deal here?

“I think we have the better end of the deal, though I can’t really feel my fingertips anymore,” Spencer said to his dog, who was finally sniffing around to do her business.

He turned around to give her some privacy, watching the empty streets, and an occasional car very carefully putter down the road. As he tried to think of what he wanted to do today without TV and internet, he felt a wet and cold nose touch his hand. He glanced down to see a very snow covered Havoc, the powdery substance sticking to her short fur.

With a groan, Hawke squatted down and started dusting her off. She thought it was a game though, and she started nipping at his hand. 

“Stop, Havoc! I don’t want you tracking water in the apartment. Please let me dust you off,” He begged, wishing the dog would still.

She didn’t though, and he could only get half the snow off. With a defeated sigh, he let her in and they went up the stairs back to the apartment. Havoc, of course, had to start shaking off the snow as soon as they got into the apartment, to which Spencer let out another loud groan.

He heard the shower turn off, so he quickly tried to mop up what water Havoc had brought in, scrubbing Havoc on her head where she laid on the floor.

“At least you have the decency to not get on the couch while wet, you horrible, horrible pooch,” Hawke whispered at her. She wagged the stump of tail she had, it thumped on the ground heavily and probably woke up their neighbors down stairs.

“Havoc, come here girl,” He heard Anders in the bedroom, and he swiveled his head to peer towards the room. Since when did Anders want Havoc in the bedroom? This was news to Hawke. He watched Havoc practically bound into the bedroom, knocking her hip against the corner wall as she passed. Spencer watched her with a snort, before going back to picking lint on his jacket that he had yet to take off. He heard the bedroom door shut, but he paid no mind, focused on an extremely fuzzy, yet irritating piece of lint that was caught on the jacket.

It wasn’t till he saw something flash in the corner of his eye that he looked up in time for Anders to slide in his lap. Startled, he jumped slightly, his eyes widening for a moment, before narrowing as he took in Anders. His golden hair was still dripping wet, though it was put back in a ponytail. Anders was wearing only pajama pants, and for some odd reason, he was wearing Hawke’s pajama pants. They barely fit him, dropping below his jutting pelvic bones in a teasing manner and showing off the blonde tuft of hair that trailed down from his belly button to below the elastic of the pants he was wearing. He took in a sharp breath, his eyes moving up his boyfriend’s body and settling on his face.

“Like what you see, love?” Anders purred, rubbing his ass against Hawke’s legs a couple of times.

Hawke swallowed the ‘ _oh Maker, yes_ ’ he was about to blabber out, going for, “Is this why you put Havoc in the bedroom?” instead.

“Yes, because apparently, I can’t seduce you without your dog thinking I’m about to murder you,” Anders replied, his hand sliding up into Hawke’s jacket. Anders hummed appreciatively when he noticed Spencer wasn’t wearing a shirt underneath the jacket.

“It doesn’t take much to seduce me, love,” Hawke murmured in a husky voice, arching his back so that his growing erection pressed into Anders.

He saw Anders visibly shiver at that, biting his lip, he removed his hand from under Spencer’s jacket. He cupped his cheek and swooped in for a kiss. It wasn’t a soft or sweet kiss, it was a fierce and lustful kiss. It demanded attention. Their lips opened and their tongues met, setting off sparks down Spencer’s spine. His hands roamed up Anders’ bare back, scratching his nails against his skin. He reached up and gently pulled the ponytail out of Anders’ hair, clawing through the silky locks with his fingers.

“Oh _fuck_ ,” Anders whispered against Hawke’s lips, reaching up one of his hands to tangle in his lover’s hair, tugging on it. He used the other to unzip and remove the jacket from Hawke's torso, moving both his hands up and down Spencer's chest. 

Hawke pulled back a little, touching his swollen lips and grinning at Anders, “I think you’re too eager this morning, love. Let me help you ease some tension.”

He shooed Anders off of him, ordering him to sit on the couch. Spencer got down on his knees in front of him, licking his lips as he looked down at the bulge in his boyfriend’s pants. He ran his hands up Anders’ legs and grabbed onto the elastic of his pants.

“I can’t believe you’re wearing my pants,” He muttered as he pulled them down achingly slow, dropping them to his ankles.

“More dick sucking, less talking love,” Anders panted, his hands reaching down to grip his thighs. Hawke tested his hard dick a couple of times, stroking it with his hand while he re-positioned himself on the floor so he could reach Anders better.

Once he felt a bit more comfortable, he leaned forward and pressed a small kiss to the tip, before taking it in his mouth. He swirled his tongue around the tip before taking in more. It wasn’t long before Anders tangled his fingers into Hawke's messy hair and pushed him to take more into his mouth. He ran his tongue over the bottom of his cock, before bobbing back down to take in the whole length. He reached forward and gripped Anders’ hips, digging his fingernails into his sensitive skin. 

“Oh love, fuck _yes_ ,” Anders moaned, bucking his hips as to urge Hawke to go faster. He obliged, moving his eyes up to Anders, who was writhing at every touch to his body. Spencer finally got into an even movement, smoothing out his earlier jerky, over-excited motions. Small whimpers and moans came from his mouth as he sucked his lover’s dick. Anders curled his fingers into Hawke’s hair tightly, moaning obscene words at his boyfriend, which drove Hawke insane.

“I can’t wait to have your cock in my ass. So big and thick inside me. I want you to fuck me hard, Spencer Hawke. I want to scream your name. _Fuck!_ ” Spencer felt Anders’ dick throb in his mouth, before his lover came. He winced slightly, before swallowing. Hawke removed his mouth from his lover’s shaft, wiping the excess saliva and come off his chin onto his arm. Spencer was rock hard now, and he ached to have his cock inside his lover.

“I’ll go get the lubricant,” Hawke was about to stand up, but Anders stopped him, motioning to his pajama pants.

“I was prepared, that’s how you seduce people,” He paused, “I wish you would say lube and not lubricant. Sounds like you’re about to grease up a bicycle or something,” He muttered.

“I just find the word funny, don’t ruin my fun,” Hawke responded, digging in the pajama pant's pocket, and pulling out the lube. 

“Come down here, love, and I’ll help you,” Spencer whispered with a glint in his eyes. Anders excitedly dropped to the floor, his dick already hardening once again in anticipation. He pressed his back into the floor, spreading his legs and staring up at Hawke through half-lidded eyes. The sight of his boyfriend laid out for Spencer like this could almost make him come by itself.

Spencer coated his fingers in lube before pressing them against Anders’ entrance. He pushed one finger in, gauging how much he could do before Anders was begging him for his cock.

“Maker, hurry up, I need you inside me,” Anders half-growled, half-moaned. Hawke slipped another finger inside of his boyfriend, moving them around to stretch him out.

“Technically, I am inside you, love. These are my fingers,” He pointed out in a teasing manner.

“You know that’s not what I meant. I want-“ A sharp gasp cut him off as Spencer inserted a third finger, curling his fingers just in the right position to make his lover squirm. A thin layer of sweat glistened against Spencer’s skin as he concentrated on preparing his lover.

Finally, he removed his fingers and dribbled some lube onto his dick. Anders legs curled immediately, his knees coming to rest on Hawke’s sides, his toes digging into the carpet. He positioned himself in front of Anders, his body in between two solid legs. Hawke pressed the tip of his aching cock against Anders’ entrance, watching Anders' face. With a flick of his hips, he was inside him. Anders let out a sinfully long moan.

“ _Fuck yes_ , love,” He groaned, pushing himself down so he could take in more of Spencer’s length. After a moment of adjustment, Hawke buried himself to the hilt. Anders let out a moan that ended in a whimper. The man underneath him arched his back, to which Hawke grabbed onto his hips and thrusted forward. It felt amazing to have his cock inside his lover.

“Love, you’re so tight. I could fuck you like this all day,” He growled out, rolling his hips in a more fluid motion.

“Well, I’m not going anywhere,” Anders panted out, his skin slick with mingled sweat from both their bodies. Hawke leaned down and latched onto one of Anders’ nipples, running his tongue over it and giving it a nip. He glanced up at his boyfriend and saw he was whimpering and moaning with pleasure, cuss words mingled with Spencer’s name flew from his mouth.

Once he pulled away from his chest, Anders’ hand flew down to his own dick, pumping it with fast flicks of his wrist. Hawke watched the movements as he fucked the man underneath him. He wasn’t going to last much longer, he could feel the edge coming closer. It wasn’t long before he came, a long moan of Anders’ name leaving his lips.

Anders came shortly after, letting out a shout that probably startled the neighbors above them as well as below them, and probably next to them. They were one loud family.

Hawke leaned down, pressing a chaste kiss to his lips, before pulling out. He stood up, his knees sore from being on the floor too long and from the carpet burn. He cleaned himself up as well as his boyfriend, before they both cuddled up on the couch.

“So, does this beat going to work?” Anders whispered in the silence, wrapping his arms around Spencer’s arm and pulling him close.

“Is that even a question?”


	6. Ice Skating

### Chapter Six: _Ice Skating_

“Ow, ouch,” He heard Anders murmuring as he moved around the room. Hawke groaned and opened his eyes to peer over at his boyfriend.

“Are you having issues, love?” He implored, rolling his shoulders.

“Yes, my back is aching and my hips are sore,” He replied painfully. Hawke felt the dip of the mattress and Anders pressed his body against his.

“I’m sorry, maybe we shouldn’t have fucked on the floor?” Spencer rolled his eyes and buried his face into Anders’ hair, breathing in his scent.

“Don’t say that, love. The sex was hot and amazing. The side effects are less than amazing though,” He mumbled against Hawke’s skin, giving Spencer goosebumps.

“We could’ve had sex, I don’t know, in the bed. But you had to seduce me on the couch,” Hawke retorted, wrapping his arms around his lover’s waist and pulling him closer. He pressed a small kiss to Anders’ nose with a smile.

Anders wrinkled his nose and smiled back, burying his face in the crook of Hawke’s arm, "That wouldn't have been as fun." He draped his arm comfortably over the other man’s stomach. They laid like that for a while, and Hawke was dosing off when the doorbell rang.

“We’re naked, go away!” Hawke shouted at the top of his lungs, earning a happy bark from Havoc in the living room and a moan from Anders.

A loud few knocks sounded through the apartment, and Anders scowled up at Hawke, “Why did you say that?”

“It’s the truth?” Hawke said innocently.

Anders stared at him for a few more seconds, before scooting out of bed. Spencer watched him put on his own pajama pants and then his robe on top, glaring back at Hawke one more time before heading into the living room.

“Yeah, make the crippled man go get the door, it’s all right,” He called back to his boyfriend.

“I’m sorry, love, I’ll fuck you gentler next time,” Hawke responded teasingly.

He heard the door open moments later, and he heard Anders say, “Why, hello Bethany. So nice to see you.”

With his eyes widening to dinner plates, Hawke made a scramble to find some pants. Why the hell did his sister feel the need to bother them like this?

“Ice skating? Is that an invitation?” Anders said loudly, probably so Spencer could hear.

“Hold on, I’m coming out there!” Hawke yelled, finally getting his discarded pajama pants on and jogging to the door.

Havoc and Anders were standing next to a bundled-up Bethany, who turned her gaze to Hawke as soon as he approached. Her eyes turned down into a scowl when she saw him, frowning deeply.

“You’re naked, huh? And you have rough sex? That’s something I never needed to know about my brother,” She hissed, slapping his arm.

“I thought you were possibly a religious group coming to give pamphlets? I get really tired of them, so I shout obscene things at them. They usually run away,” Hawke explained sheepishly, his whole face turning red.

“That’s horrible, Spencer! I can’t believe I’m related to you,” She said, horrified.

“I can’t believe you are either, you’re so mature and patient and-“ 

“All right, today is not pick on Spencer Hawke day. I heard something about ice skating!”

“Yes, I was going to invite you and Anders to go ice skating with Sebastian, I, and _Carver_ ,” She said their brother’s name with emphasis, her eyebrows rising slightly.

“Well, uh, maybe that’s not such a great idea-“ Anders started, but Hawke interrupted him, nodding firmly, “Let’s go ice skating. What time?”

“Well, it’s about noon right now, I thought we would go while most of the snow has been moved by the snow plows and the roads salted like fresh fries,” Bethany said.

“So, like ten minutes? We can get dress pretty quick,” Hawke offered.

“Sounds good. Carver and Sebastian are in the car, so I would make it quick unless you want them to kill each other before we get to the car.”

“Right,” Hawke walked back to the bedroom, Anders dragging his feet as he followed. When the door was shut, Anders turned around to look at Spencer with an astounded look.

“I can’t believe you accepted that invite, Spencer! Carver is going to stab me and hide my body in such a good place you won’t even know what happened to me!” 

“Don’t be absurd, he’ll have to go through me first. I won’t let him hurt you, love,” Spencer cooed, taking Anders’ face in his hands and placing a sweet kiss on his lips.

“You said that last time, and then he almost clawed my eyes out,” Anders retorted, kissing him back momentarily.

“Just…don’t upset him?” Hawke offered with a smile.

“I hate you.”

They got dressed and then went out into the living room to put on their coats and boots. Bethany was petting and cooing at Havoc while they got on their gloves and hats.

“Are you two finally ready? You took long enough,” Bethany stood up, glancing over at her brother with raised eyebrows.

“I can’t believe he is dressing warmly. Around this time last year, he was wearing flip-flops and the lightest jacket you’ve ever seen,” She smiled at Anders, “You’re a good influence.”

Anders blushed and looked down, mumbling, “Well, I can’t really take all the credit.”

“Can we hurry and go before the roads ice over again? I don’t really want to be stranded because your shitty car can’t handle it,” Hawke finally piped up, staring over at Bethany with a teasing expression.

“All right, fine! Just because of that, you get to sit in the back between Carver and Sebastian!” She pointed at him, laughing at her brother’s frightened face.

They went out to the running car, where two men, one in the front, and one in the back, seemed to be talking loudly, moving their hands around a lot more than needed. Hawke could Bethany’s audible sigh from a few feet behind her.

She opened the driver side door and peered into the car, “Babe, get in the back, you’re riding with Carver and Spencer.”

There was a moment of complaint, but Sebastian got out of the car, grumbling, and opened the door for Spencer to get into the middle. Hawke turned to look at Anders, hoping he would say something to stop this madness, but Anders was grinning smugly at his boyfriend, his arms crossed.

“You were serious? Bethany, please. I’ll die in between them!” He said, grabbing his sister’s arm dramatically.

“Just get in the car, brother,” He heard Carver snap from the backseat.

“Sorry love,” Anders pecked Spencer on the cheek, before going over to the other side of the car and getting in the front seat.

With a whimper, Spencer got into the backseat, pressing himself against Carver harder than he probably should have.

“Get off me, you big hulking bear!” Carver growled, pushing back as Sebastian daintily got in and shut the door.

Hawke knocked shoulders with Sebastian, to which he gave Bethany’s boyfriend a sheepish grin, “Sorry.”

The whole ride was pretty silent except for Carver muttering under his breath and Bethany and Anders talking up front.

They made it to the ice skating rink without incident, and they rented their ice skates without problems as well. There weren’t many on the ice, so they could pretty much do whatever they wanted. As they were putting on their skates, Anders sat closely to Spencer, looking at his skates nervously.

“Do you have a problem; do you not know how to tie shoes?” Carver called to Anders.

“Huh, what was that? I thought you were talking to yourself,” Spencer retorted, glaring over at his younger brother.

Spencer leaned into his lover and murmured, “Is everything ok, love?”

“Yes, it’s just, I uh…don’t know how to ice skate,” He mumbled, his face turning red under his black beanie.

“What?! Anders, tell me you’re joking!” Hawke whispered with an excited tone.

“I-I’m not, love. It’s something I just never mastered. I always tried, but I always fall on my butt.”

“I would pay to see that,” Carver yelled, to which Bethany whopped him across the back of his head.

“Don’t worry, Anders. I'll make sure you don’t. I’ve ice skated most of my life, it’s Bethany’s favorite sport. I can teach you,” Hawke whispered soothingly, rubbing his boyfriend’s back.

With a sigh, Anders glanced over at him, before nodding, “All right, I’ll give it a try. Just for you.”

Once they all had on their skates, Bethany and Carver were the first on the ice, and they skated like pros.

“How did they learn to skate like that?!” Sebastian gaped at them.

“I let them get ice skating lessons when they were little. Bethany wanted to do it, and Carver didn’t want her to do anything by herself when they were younger, so they did it together,” Spencer said fondly, watching his younger siblings with a loving gaze.

Anders watched his boyfriend with a small smile, glad he was reminiscing about his family. Maker knows he had a hard time with his brother. It was good Carver was finally coming around.

“Alright, let’s go!” Hawke took a hold of his lover’s hand and got on the ice, turning to look at Anders with a great big grin. Anders stumbled slightly, taking Spencer’s other hand, and taking a step onto the ice carefully.

“Don’t fall on your ass!” Carver sneered from where he was with Bethany.

“Maker knows you did it enough when you first started! I’d be rich if I got a dollar for every time you fell back then!” Hawke snarled back, looking over his shoulder momentarily before turning back to smile at Anders’ encouragingly.

Once they were both on the ice, Spencer tugged on Anders’ hands and pulled him further onto the ice. Anders watched his boyfriend skate adeptly, and it was honestly weird. Anders always thought ice skating was such a delicate and graceful sport for people like Bethany, but Spencer did it with such ease and grace even though he was a large man. It made Anders all warm and fuzzy inside.

Hawke spun them around and he pulled Anders close, giving him a large kiss. Anders stumbled, almost slipping, before laughing and kissing the man back. He could feel his body relaxing on the ice, as he could now keep his balance. Hawke’s firm hands were definitely helping him a lot as they coasted along the ice. 

Out of the corner of his eye, Spencer could see Sebastian carefully step on the ice and immediately fall on his butt. Bethany skated over quickly to help him up, leaving Carver to skate by himself. A feeling of protectiveness washed over Hawke, and he wanted to go and skate with his younger brother so he wouldn’t feel left out. Carver noticed his look and shot him the bird, to which all those feelings left him. His brother was 26 after all, he doubted Carver cared anymore. He wasn’t the child Hawke once knew.

“Do you think I could try to skate by myself, love?” Anders finally asked after they had been skating for a while.

“Of course! I think you can do it,” Hawke said affectionately. He kissed his lover’s gloved knuckles, before releasing his hands, Anders’ fingers slipping from his grasp slowly.

Once he was away from Hawke, his ankles buckled slightly, but he didn’t fall. Spencer watched in anticipation as Anders slowly skated over to the edge of the rink. He didn’t fall once, and Hawke cheered loudly as he came back over to his boyfriend.

“Oh love, you did it! I knew you could!” Spencer boasted, wrapping his arm around Anders’ shoulders and placing a big smacker on his cheek.

“Hey guys, I’m getting a little cold, can we leave now?” Bethany called to them.

“Yeah, I’m getting a bit cold as well,” Carver complained.

They got off the ice and they were taking off their shoes when Carver waltzed over towards Anders and Hawke. Spencer prepared himself to jump in between Anders and Carver if they started duking it out. But instead, his younger brother reached down and gave Anders a slap on the back, scaring him half to death.

“You did really good. A bit more practice and you won’t look like a chicken flopping around on the ice,” He muttered gruffly, before rushing away to return his skates.

Anders stared after him with wide eyes, before turning to Hawke with excited eyes, “He said something nice to me.”

“Congratulations, love. You’re a lot farther along than I am with him. You deserve a reward.”

“Does that reward include sex?” Anders questioned with a seductive tone.

“I’ll think about it.”


	7. Sleigh Ride

### Chapter Seven: _Sleigh Party_

“You gotta be kidding me, no, you can't be, you couldn't come up with such an elaborate story,” Hawke quickly silenced Varric into offended silence.

After a moment, Varric cleared his throat and smoothed his hair back, “No, unfortunately, I'm not joking. Your sister has invited us all to go on a sleigh ride. She was able to rent a sleigh for a couple hours on some farm at the edge of Kirkwall. I don't know how we will all fit on it together, but maybe Anders can sit in your lap,” Varric grinned and chuckled.

“You say she invited 'us all' to go. Who exactly is going, pray tell?”

“Let's see…. You, possibly Anders, Bethany, Carver, Sebastian, Merrill, and Fenris just came back into town, so Bethany invited him as well. Isabela said she hated horses, and Aveline has to work late at the station tonight, so they decided not to tag along.”

“Hold on, wait, Fenris is back in town?!” Hawke excitedly bounced on the balls of his feet, a light growing in his eyes.

Varric looked him over with a slightly nervous expression, “Yes, he is, but I would prefer if he didn't come along honestly. I would hate to have another incident like last year.”

“No, that won't happen. There should be nothing for Anders nor Fenris to be jealous of. I'm a literal garbage can. So, Fenris is coming, and my boyfriend is going too.”

“I'm not disagreeing on the garbage can part, Hawke, I just don't think-”

“What am I going too?” Spencer turned around to see his boyfriend toweling his hair in the hallway, only dressed in a pair of black sweatpants.

“Bethany invited us to a sleigh ride tonight! All of our friends are going!” Spencer smiled widely, hoping Anders would want to go without bribery.

“Like a horse drawn sleigh ride? That sounds enjoyable. Who all is going?” Anders inquired curiously, wiping his face on the towel a couple times.

“Well uh, Bethany, Sebastian, Carver, Varric, Merrill, and...Fenris,” Hawke mumbled the last name, but apparently Anders heard him. The man froze, his shoulders tensing for a good couple of moments.

“Fenris is back in town?” Anders asked tersely, bringing his head up to stare at Hawke with a slightly lonesome look. It made Spencer slightly recoil, wondering why his lover had such a look.

“Apparently so, because Bethany invited him,” Hawke responded, losing his smile.

Varric noticed the tense atmosphere and the look exchanged between the couple, to which he took a step back.

“I think I'll head out. If you're coming, it will start at six. I'll text you the address,” Varric made a quick escape, leaving the men to themselves.

“I don't want to go,” Anders finally said, his voice flat.

“So, you can handle Carver and his constant need to belittle and make you a punching bag, but you can't handle Fenris being a civil friend?” Hawke questioned, his voice cool.

“Is that even a question?! I am not friends with Fenris, nor will I ever be,” Anders snapped, turning on his heel and stomping into the bedroom.

“I hope you're still not holding a grudge about last year, Anders. You're being childish,” Hawke followed him into the bedroom, putting his hands on his hips and watching his boyfriend slip into a shirt.

“ _Me_ , being childish? You can't be serious. I think I deserve to be able to act like this after what he did.”

“He apologized to you and to me, can't you just let it go, for me?”

Anders looked over at Spencer, his gaze softening slightly, “I just don't think I could handle Fenris coming in and trying to steal you right from under my nose once again. I don't want to lose you, love,” He took a couple steps towards Hawke and pressed his palm to his lover's cheek.

“You shouldn't feel that way, love. I'm my own person, and I know who I lo- I know who I want. And it's you, it's always been you,” Spencer smiled tenderly, kissing Anders' hand on his face. The word 'love' was stuck in his throat, knowing if he used the word, there was a chance he would be rejected.

“I guess if you want to go on the sleigh ride, I don't terribly mind going. I actually enjoy sleigh rides,” Anders said with a radiant smile.

“And I love horses!” Spencer responded, getting excited once again.

“You love all animals, love.”

They spent most of the day on the couch, watching Netflix and hoping maybe the cable would come back on. They were running on just the internet, which came up sometime last night. They took a nap somewhere around four and Spencer was woken up to the sound of his phone buzzing against his face. Why did he always leave it there when he fell asleep?

It was five thirty, and Bethany was texting him non-stop, wondering where he was. With a long groan, he sat up and gently shook Anders awake, who was reclined on the couch recliner.

“We gotta go, love. The sleigh ride is in half an hour,” He whispered, getting up and kissing Anders' forehead lovingly.

“Do we have to go? I've changed my mind, I'm too tired to go,” Anders yawned and smiled drowsily towards Hawke, who was fixing his hair in his phone camera.

“What would you propose we do if we don't go to the sleigh ride then? Sleep?”

“No, I have better, sexier plans,” He responded with a seductive tone.

“You're a real horn-dog, you know that? What happened to being too tired? Too tired to go on a sleigh ride, but not enough to have sex?”

“Ugh, I hate it when you make sense,” Anders got up and stretched, revealing some of his lower abdomen. Spencer knew he was probably doing it purposely, but he pretended like he didn't notice.

“Get your shoes on and fix your hair, we don't want to be too late,” Spencer said, picking at something on his face.

After a lot of urging from Hawke, Anders and him finally got out of the house and on the road. The farm was only 15 minutes away, so they were around 15 minutes late. When they arrived, everyone who said they were coming were mulling around by two beautiful halla with a lovely curved sleigh hooked to them. They got out their car and Hawke hurried them over to the group.

“Sorry we're late, we overslept!” Spencer apologized, bowing his head slightly.

“I hope you really were sleeping,” Bethany replied, earning a choked laugh from Varric.

“Yes, dear sister of mine, we were actually taking a nap. Why, did you want to hear we had rough, kinky sex? Because I could talk about what we did the other night-”

“NO, no! It's ok, really! Please, sister, stop provoking him before I die of embarrassment,” Carver reached forward and gripped Bethany's arm tightly, giving her a scowl.

“As if all of us haven't heard Hawke's horrible jokes before,” Hawke heard a familiar snort, and his whole face lit up as he spotted Fenris behind Bethany and Carver.

“Fenris!” He chirped, grinning happily towards his friend.

“Hello Hawke, it's been a while,” Fenris made his way to the front, looking up at Hawke with familiar small smile.

“Have you gotten shorter, I thought you were up to my neck,” Hawke put his hand on top of Fenris' head and measured it to his chest.

Fenris blushed slightly, a scowl coming to his face, “No, I haven't gotten any shorter, Hawke. You're getting taller.”

Spencer gasped, “Really, you think so? Look at me from the side, Bethany, do I look taller?”

Everyone let out an audible sigh, before Bethany cleared her throat, “Let's get this show on the road! I even have someone to drive us around. She said it will take half an hour to go around the whole farm, and then we can go around as much as we want too until the two hours are up!”

Hawke clapped, before backing up slightly to wrap his arm around Anders, who was off to the side awkwardly.

“C'mon love, let's get in the sleigh. I want an edge seat so I can see everything,” He squeezed his lover's shoulder, before dipping his head to murmur in his ear, “Is everything alright?”

“Yes, I'm fine at the moment, I'm just amazed this farmer has halla. I was told only certain farmers have the nact for breeding them. Legends say few people can actually talk to halla,” He whispered, glancing over at the deer-like creatures whinnying impatiently.

Hawke turned thrilled eyes towards the animals, instinctively wanting to touch one. But the driver was giving him the evil eye, so he decided against it, only cooing at the creatures as they stepped up onto the sleigh. 

Spencer was pleased he got the seat on the edge of the sleigh, facing the driver with Anders on his side. There was a slight problem, though. Fenris seated himself across from Hawke, and his eyes were on him. Spencer could feel how tense Anders was next to him, and it made he, himself, a little uneasy.

“Don't worry, love. Just enjoy the ride with me. Please?” Hawke slipped his gloved hand into Anders', giving him a simple peck on the cheek with a sweet smile.

Anders relaxed a little, nodding his head, he brought Hawke's hand to his lips and gave it a lingering kiss, holding it firmly in his lap afterward.

“Guess I won't be using that hand anytime during the sleigh ride, eh?” Hawke joked, giving his boyfriend's hand a squeeze. Anders snorted and bumped shoulders with him, “If you ask nicely, I could give you permission.”

“Kinky,” Spencer responded as the last person got in the sleigh.

“Could we go two hours without you or Varric making some kind of sex joke, please?” Bethany begged from where she was next to Sebastian.

They all heard the slap of a whip, and then the sleigh was moving.

“Yes, rein it in, please,” Sebastian added, his nose crinkled.

“I quite like the jokes they make though,” Merrill piped up, which made everyone swivel their heads towards her. She sheepishly twitched in her seat, “I like crude jokes sometimes,” She mumbled.

The sleigh ride went on peacefully, everyone getting good laughs together and enjoying the time together. The scenery was also beautiful, with the snow covered pines that swept across the vast land the farmer owned. There was a herd of halla peacefully sleeping in a fenced-in area, almost looking like part of the scenery if you didn't look close enough. Most of the crops were withered, but the land owner had winter flowers blooming, and their vibrant colors popped up here and there, adding a splash of life into the white blanket over the expanse of earth.

And finally, the first ride was over. Hawke jumped out first, almost slipping on the ice on the ground, knocking his head against part of the sleigh with a loud “ _FUCK!_ ”

“Oh love!” He heard a laughing Anders from the sleigh, and Spencer spun around to glare at his boyfriend, rubbing the back of his head, which was throbbing.

“Great, I got a horrible headache now. I hope you find this hilarious,” He growled half-heartedly at his lover, who was still snorting.

“You should be more careful, Spencer,” He heard his sister giggling from next to Anders.

“Shut up, I hate both of you!”

“Anders,” Fenris stood up, looking down at Anders calmly, who instantly shut up, “I would like to speak with you privately.”

He hopped off the sleigh and walked towards the cars, looking back at Hawke, before turning to look a different direction.

“I think Spencer is down and out for the night, guys. Thanks for inviting us,” Anders giggled. He gave Bethany and Merrill a quick hug, before stepping off the sleigh and giving Hawke a suspicious look.

“What does Fenris want to speak with me about?” He questioned.

“How should I know? I'm going to get in the car, go talk with him and see,” He gestured towards Fenris, before heading to the car. Once he was in, he watched his lover head towards Fenris with slow, cautious movements. A few words were spoken from Fenris, then an ourburst from Anders, before he calmed down. Fenris spoke once more, then Anders. And it was over. Anders came over to the car and got into the driver's seat.

“What was that about, love? Is everything alright?”

“It was nothing, Spencer. We just had a small chat,” He said, starting the car.

Deciding not to push further, he changed the topic, “Well, did you like the sleigh ride? It wasn't as bad as you thought. Fenris didn't try to swoop me off my feet,” He teased, reaching over and taking Anders' hand gently.

“You're right, I might've been a little too worried over Fenris. I'm sorry, love, I hope I didn't ruin your fun with my irrational fears.”

“You, ruining my fun? Perish the thought, Anders. I know we had some rough patches, but I don't want to ever leave you. I hope you know that.”

“Is that your way of saying 'I love you' without actually saying it?” Anders teased.

Spencer swallowed hard, looking down, “No, I wasn't trying to force it, I was just-”

Anders glanced over at him, his smile turning into a frown, “I was just joking, love. You don't have to say that you love me if you don't want too. But I think I'm in love with you.”

Hawke sat there for a moment, at a loss for words. He had said he loved Anders before, but it didn't seem real. This did seem real though, and he could feel it on the tip of his tongue, wanting to say it so bad he ached.

“I love you, Anders,” He finally said with a large relieved sigh.

With a small laugh, Anders squeezed Spencer's hand, “I love you too, Spencer Hawke.”


	8. Hot Beverages

### Chapter Eight: _Hot beverages_

Penelope was woken up to the smell of tea wafting through the bedroom. It was a wonderful smell to wake up too. She knew that if she wasn't making tea, Fenris was probably doing it. Not unless Puppers learned how to do it magically.

She sat up and stretched her arms to the ceiling, letting out an audible yawn. Hawke threw the covers off her and headed into the living room.

“Did you let out Puppers, love?” She called towards the kitchen, her own voice sounding drowsy.

“I did early this morning. He might want to go out again though,” Fenris replied.

Penelope stretched once again and went over to where Puppers was laying on the couch, sleeping soundly. She almost wanted to leave the old boy alone, but as soon as she approached, Puppers' head shot up and he wagged his tail happily at his owner.

“Do you want to go outside, boy? C'mon, let's go outside!” She cooed at him, making her way towards the back door with Puppers trailing behind her excitedly.

“Please put on some shoes, Penelope. You're going to catch a cold like that,” Fenris warned.

“You haven't even seen me this morning, I could have shoes on right now and you wouldn't even know!” She retorted, opening the door and letting her mutt plow out straight into a pile of snow. Apparently he wasn't expecting the snow to be so high, since he let out a distressed squeal as he landed.

“I don't know who you think I am, but I know you well enough to know that you don't have shoes on. At least put my boots on,” Fenris called.

“You're no fun. You run around all the time without shoes on! You can't give me a lesson on wearing them,” She muttered, grabbing his boots and slipping them on her feet. He had to be one size smaller than her, he always had such tiny feet.

She went outside, the cold biting at her fingertips and making the hairs on her arms prickle. It was another freezing day on the outskirts of Kirkwall. Legend has it that Kirkwall actually had some kind of snowstorm, though it breezed right over their house. She couldn't remember the last time Kirkwall had a snowstorm, it had to be before she was born.

As she was lost in thought, her phone buzzed in her pajama pants pocket. She fished it out and peered down at the number. With a small sigh, she answered.

“Good morning Penelope! How are you, my lovely sister!?” Bethany yelled in a sing-song voice.

“Do you know what time it is? If you would've called any earlier, I wouldn't have answered,” Penelope muttered.

“Yes you would have! Because I'm your sister, and I have some important news!”

“Great, I can't wait to hear what you've been planning,” She replied, turning her gaze to where Puppers was snuffing.

“It isn't my idea this time, I swear. It's mother's. She wants all of us to come to dinner Christmas Eve,” She explained excitedly.

“Wait, repeat that? Mother actually planned something? This isn't going to be like Thanksgiving, I hope. I will never look at a turkey the same after that,” Hawke shuddered and crossed her arms to ward off the goosebumps forming on her forearms.

“Maker, Thanksgiving was a wreck. But no, it will not be like that. I will be helping, so nothing should go wrong. She did say that all your friends are invited too, so I went ahead and called up most of them myself. You just have to speak to Anders and Merrill since I never got their phone numbers,” Bethany declared.

“I think I can do that. Though I do find it disturbing that you have all my friend's numbers.”

“They are my friends too. Well, most of them anyways. That's not the point! Christmas Eve dinner, on Christmas Eve. Can you and your hubby come?”

“Don't call him that, Beth! Maker, he has spidey senses, I bet he's coming out here right now to kill you through the phone,” She hissed, to which her sister burst out laughing.

“Penelope, you can't be serious! You've been dating for three years now, aren't you a little curious if you'll ever take it any further? I mean, for Andraste's sake, you own a house together. Marriage is supposed to come before that I'm pretty sure,” Bethany told her with another loud cackle.

“I think you're mixing up children and houses...again. But you're right, I am a little curious as to where the relationship is going. But I can't just waltz up to my boyfriend and ask him if he's going to pop the question before we turn 80.”

She didn't get to hear what Bethany said though, because apparently the phone was ripped from her sister's grasp. She heard Bethany screech and then Carver was speaking to her.

“Are you coming to the Christmas Eve dinner or not? Maker, you two gossip like a bunch of high school girls.”

“Yes, dear brother of mine, Fenris and I will be coming to dinner on Christmas Eve,” Penelope nodded her head as she spoke like he could see that. She bit her lip and rolled her eyes.

Puppers finally finished whatever the hell he was doing and came romping up to the porch, his stump of a tail swinging wildly.

“Listen, I gotta go. Hopefully I'll see you before Christmas Eve, Carver. Tell Bethany I love her. And I also love you,” She said in her sickly sweet voice.

There was a moment of silence, and she thought Carver hung up, but she heard him finally say, “I love you too.” And then he hung up.

She smiled and looked down at her phone fondly. She missed the twins so much sometimes, she couldn't wait to see them Christmas Eve or maybe even earlier.

“What did you just sign me up for?” She heard behind her as she was about to go inside. She jumped, almost slipping on the porch, grabbing onto something for support. That ended up being her boyfriend's arm reaching for her waist to steady her as well.

Puppers ran past them and inside the house, probably trailing snow behind him because she didn't get to clean off his paws before he barreled inside.

“You scared me, don't do that!” Penelope breathed, turning to look at Fenris with a slightly panicked expression.

“Sorry amatus, I was coming to get you because I finished making tea, and I overheard you talking to Bethany and supposedly Carver?”

“Uh yes, I was. Um, how much did you hear?” She questioned nervously, taking a hold of a strand of her hair and twisting it between her fingers.

“Only about us going to a Christmas Eve dinner. Why, was there something I wasn't supposed to hear?” He responded, tilting his head with a confused look. He gently took her hand away from her hair and kissed it, calming her nerves slightly.

“No, no, I was only curious because...because eavesdropping is rude and you shouldn't do it!” She lied, crossing her toes that he believed her.

His face did not look convinced, but he didn't push the subject further, thank the Maker.

“So, we're going to your mother's house for Christmas Eve? You thought that was a better idea than staying at home?”

“Well no, but I couldn't just tell my family no, love. Besides, I haven't spent Christmas Eve over there in a while. I think you'll enjoy it, Fenris.”

“If you say so. Now, come inside, the tea will get cold if we stay out here too long,” He gave her a tender smile that made her warm all over.

“You know the way to my heart,” Penelope commented as they headed into their inviting home. Fenris wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close, picking up a red mug from the dining room table and giving it to her. He gave her a peck on the cheek.

“Only because I've taken the path many times.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, haha, that wasn't entirely about hot beverages, but at least give me an A for effort.


	9. Traditions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, about traditions, is actually one of my own traditions my family does every year Christmas morning. Hope you enjoy.

### Chapter Nine: _Traditions_

“Bethany, can you grab my phone, I think Carver texted me,” Hawke asked his sister sweetly, smiling.

She looked over at him skeptically, “You think he'd text you and not me? Don't make me laugh.”

“A man can dream,” He muttered, checking the food in the oven with increasing giddiness.

“He said he's about five minutes away, but that was ten minutes ago. Anders just texted you,” She handed him his phone before checking the oven herself.

“It's not ready yet, Beth, I just checked,” He teased her, to which she crossed her arms and pouted impatiently.

While he was waiting for the timer to go off, he looked at the messages on his phone.

_Anders: I miss you so much already love  
Anders: Is it time to come home yet?_

Spencer sighed happily, putting his elbow on the counter and his chin on his palm, reading the messages once again with a dreamy look. This was the first day Anders had to go to work after being snowed in for a couple days. The snow finally clearing enough for it to not be as dangerous. He was reluctant, saying he could be a house-boyfriend while Spencer made all the money. Hawke couldn't stop laughing at that one. Does he really not know how much money his lover makes?

“Earth to Spencer, I'm going to go let Carver in. Make sure the monkey bread doesn't burn,” She advised him, elbowing him in the ribs.

Spencer glanced over at her as she was leaving the kitchen, nodding at the back of her head. Once she was out of the room, he quickly turned back to his phone, typing on the keyboard to send a text to his boyfriend.

_Me: You got another...five hours to go, love. Be strong_

After he sent that, he heard the front door open, so he went over to the oven and opened it again, peering inside at the food. The monkey bread only had a few more minutes and so did the sausage egg souffle.

“I'm starving, is the food ready yet?” He heard Carver behind him, so he turned around and grinned widely at his younger brother.

“Feeling reminiscent, brother? Remember when I used to make this for you every year during Christmas?”

Carver gave him a suspicious look, before shoving his hands in his pockets and looking anywhere but his brother's face, “Yeah, I remember. Did you ever stop doing this?”

“He didn't do it once, and that was after you left!” Bethany shoved Carver hard, making him stumble.

Spencer heard the timer go off, and he was secretly grateful it did, he really didn't want to remember the horrible things they went through. This was about tradition and family!

“The food is ready, if one of you will set the table and the other get the drinks,” Spencer instructed his siblings.

“And you'll...what? Stand there and look pretty?”

“Was that a compliment, Carver Hawke? I'm surprised,” He teased his brother, who was grabbing the plates to set the table.

“That's not what I-- nevermind,” He scurried off to the table, where he set the plates and silverware down loudly.

“Don't tease him too much today, Spence. You know how he despises your teasing,” Bethany murmured while pouring milk into each cup.

Hawke rolled his eyes before his phone buzzed again. He picked it up off the counter and unlocked it, checking his texts.

_Anders: What will I get for being strong during work? ;)_

Spencer's breath caught in his throat as he read the text, his cheeks burning bright red as he realized what his boyfriend was implicating. Maker, his sister was right next to him, pouring drinks for their family breakfast. He pressed his palm to the edge of the counter to steady himself, analyzing what he could say that would sound equally seductive without turning himself on in the process. He really did not want to have a boner during breakfast. Carver would never let him live it down.

“Spencer, are you alright? You're all red,” Bethany suddenly said beside him, startling him. He turned his head slowly and she pressed her hand to his head as if to check his temperature.

“I'm fine, baby sister. Just talking with Anders,” He said, scratching his cheek and looking down at his phone.

Her hand immediately retracted from his head and he knew he should've kept his mouth shut. She slapped his arm and took his phone right from his grasp. He gasped and whipped around to face her, his eyes wide.

“Don't read any messages! I don't want my sister scarred for life!” He yelled out, making a grab for his smart-phone.

“What's going on?” Carver entered the kitchen, and Bethany threw Spencer's phone back to him quickly, Spencer almost not catching it. He fumbled with it, before looking back down. Bethany had typed something to Anders and what he saw almost made him faint.

“ _Why?_ Bethany, what have you done?” He whispered as he stared between her and the screen.

_Me: Nothing, because I have a tiny dick that could never satisfy you._

She burst out laughing, while Hawke tried to salvage his love life. He was typing furiously when Anders messaged back. Bethany heard the phone and leaned over to see what he said.

_Anders: Well that's not true, I would know. ;) ___

__Spencer let out a loud sigh and stuffed his phone in his pocket, glaring over at Bethany, who looked disappointed her plan didn't work out._ _

__“You're a horrible sister and I hate you,” He pointed at her, before picking up the pans of food and taking them into the dining room._ _

__“No you don't! You love meeeeeee!” She followed after him, being extremely annoying like she was sometimes. Maybe it was just because she was his sibling that made her extra annoying?_ _

__“Do you want food or not?” He implored, setting down the pans and seating himself. Bethany and Carver sat down eagerly, looking at him expectantly. This was usually when he gave some kind of speech about what next year would hold, and he didn't want to disappoint, so he cleared his throat and smiled softly._ _

__“Bethany, you've grown up so much, you'll be 27 next year, much to my dismay. You'll be getting your dream job, just like I knew you would. I'm so proud of what you've become and I hope you find happiness like I have,” He paused, turning to Carver, “And you'll be heading back to Fort Adamant in Orlais next year. I know you and I don't always get along, Carver, and we've had some bad times, but I want you to know that I do love you and I never regret raising you. I hope you find happiness as well.”_ _

__They both smiled at him, and he felt like he took a load off his shoulders talking to them both. He felt at peace._ _

__“Well, what about you? You haven't said what you'll be doing next year,” Bethany prompted, leaning forward to stare at him._ _

__“Oh, well, I'll be...in the same place, I think. My future isn't as sure as yours is, Beth. I have a job, and a stable home, but maybe there's more on the horizon? I'm not sure,” He said vaguely, waving his hand._ _

__“You also have a boyfriend, that's something that will hopefully stay with you next year,” Bethany replied with a warm smile._ _

__“Yeah, I hope so as well,” Hawke grinned back at his baby sister, a warm feeling spreading throughout his chest. He couldn't be anymore proud of his little family. Thinking about them as little children brought a tear to his eye._ _

__“Let's hurry up and eat, I think he's crying,” Carver said, digging the serving spoon into the souffle and piling it onto his plate._ _

__“I'm only crying because I'm thinking of you. I love you both.”_ _

__Carver paused in what he was doing, his eyes swimming, he glanced over at his brother, before muttering, “And we love you too, big brother.”_ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to add smut to the end, but I feel like it didn't fit into all the fluffy family stuff, so I'll save it for next chapter. ;3
> 
> And if you don't know what monkey bread is, please look here! [ Monkey Bread Recipe](https://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/grands-monkey-bread/7a1e41b1-4708-4028-8ce6-fcb5baebbc19)


	10. Candles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is rated E! Woop!

### Chapter Ten: _Candles_

After his siblings had left, Spencer texted Anders to see what time he would be coming home. Unfortunately for him, there was too much going on at the hospital and Anders wouldn’t be home till late tonight. He told Spencer to not wait up for him since Hawke had to work tomorrow. So, he was getting ready for bed around ten, when there was a long buzz and a pop. At first, he wasn’t sure what happened, but suddenly, there was no power. With a small gasp, he moved out into the living room to stare out the window.

The neighbors across the street didn’t seem to have power either, unless everyone in the apartment building decided to go to bed at the same time. He let out a groan and turned around to the dark apartment. It was eerily silent, besides Havoc’s loud snoring coming from the love-seat. With a deep breath, he traveled into the bedroom. There was no way he was getting any sleep like this. Being without power made him nervous and paranoid.

He stumbled over something in the darkness, plowing face-first into the bed. He screamed into the comforter, crawling forward till he had his face smooshed into the pillows. He needed the power back…now. Or at least someone to cuddle so he wouldn’t feel as anxious. Maybe Havoc would want to cuddle…

After a moment, an idea hit him that made him relax slightly. Anders had gone to the mall on black Friday and went into Bath and Body works, buying like six large candles. Hope flourished in his chest as he got up and headed to the storage closet by the front door. He opened the door and popped open the cardboard candle container, gathering the whole box in his arms. He went back into the living room and set it down, picking up every candle and placing it somewhere in the house. He put two in the bedroom, two in the living room, one in the kitchen, and one in the bathroom. Searching the utility drawer, he picked out the matches and lit the candles. 

After he felt a bit less stressed out, he made his way back to the bed, making sure not to trip on anything as he went to his side and laid. He rolled over and closed his eyes, trying to lull himself into sleep. He sat there for ten minutes with his eyes closed, not getting anywhere. Finally, he opened his eyes again and reached out, taking Anders’ pillow into his hands, he dragged it over to his body and buried his face into it, taking a deep breath. The lingering scent of Anders remained on the pillow, calming him slightly. He curled around the pillow and stared over at the wall, before his eyes flickered towards the candle on the dresser. The label said ‘Spiced Apple Toddy’ with an aesthetic picture of an apple. It reminded him of Anders and his weird obsession with the smell of apples.

A small part of him wanted to call Havoc into the bedroom so he had an actual living thing to snuggle in the bed with, but he couldn’t force himself to release the pillow. He sat there silently for a good hour, dosing off a couple of times but always coming back to consciousness a short time later. He checked the time and saw it was around 12. He didn’t have work till the afternoon, but he wanted more sleep than he was probably going to get. He decided that he should just wait for Anders to come home instead of suffering with fits of sleepiness. 

Just as he was thinking that, he heard the lock on the front door click slowly, and he tensed up. He knew it could only be Anders, but he still felt fear as he sat up slowly to look at the door from the bedroom. The door opened and Anders appeared, ruffling his hair, and removing his winter scarf. Spencer’s heart leapt and he waited on the bed patiently for Anders to come in further. His boyfriend kicked off his snow-caked boots and unzipped his jacket, revealing dark purple scrubs. He was about to go in the kitchen when he noticed the light from the candles.

He cautiously walked into the living room, out of sight from Hawke. After a moment, he reappeared, rubbing his scruffy chin, and heading towards their bedroom. That’s when he saw Hawke sitting in bed watching him.

“Love, you’re still awake? Is something wrong? Why did you take all my candles out?” He approached the bed and looked down at Spencer.

“The power went out, and I couldn’t sleep, so I lit all your candles. I hope you don’t mind,” Hawke explained sheepishly.

“No, it’s fine, it smells wonderful in the apartment now,” He paused as he glanced over at the pillow next to Hawke, a small smile gracing his lips, “Did you miss me that much?”

“I always miss you, love. I was just getting anxious with the power out, so I grabbed something that reminded me of you.”

“That’s fucking adorable,” Anders murmured, reaching forward, and running his fingers through Hawke’s hair. He tugged on Spencer’s hair softly, urging him to come towards him. Hawke got on his knees and crawled over to Anders, kneeling on the bed in front of him with a tilt of his head. Anders pressed his hand to Hawke’s jaw and brought him to his face, pressing a chaste kiss to his lips.

“What was that for?” Spencer wrinkled his nose with a smile.

“It was my welcome home kiss,” He whispered, his eyes searching Spencer’s.

They sat like that for a moment, Hawke embraced his lover and just held him, breathing in his scent. He felt like it only lasted for a second before Anders pulled back and looked at Hawke with an amused grin.

“By the way, did your brother steal your phone this afternoon? I saw a strange message earlier,” He took his phone out of his pocket to show his boyfriend.

“That was actually Bethany, believe it or not, Carver could never catch me off-guard,” He stuck out his tongue.

Now, Spencer wasn’t really expecting Anders to do anything now, but he got a smoldering look as his eyes flicked towards Hawke’s tongue. He clasped the back of Hawke’s neck and pulled him forward, smashing their mouths together in a much more passionate kiss than the earlier one. Their tongues met and so did their bodies, melding together like they were meant too. With one firm push, Anders pressed Spencer into the mattress, straddling him while keeping their lips locked. It felt like they fit together like puzzle pieces, at least, Hawke liked to think that way.

“What brought this on?” Spencer mumbled in between Anders' hot lips.

His boyfriend pulled back all the way at that, a whine escaping Hawke’s throat at the loss of contact.

“I asked you if I got anything for being strong at work, and you never answered, so I decided for you,” He pressed his hands against Spencer’s bare stomach, sending a visible shiver up Hawke’s body.

“Your hands are freezing,” Hawke gasped out, arching his back slightly.

Anders grinned and ran his hands up to Hawke’s chest, tweaking his nipples with cold fingers. Spencer whimpered and stared up at his lover, squirming slightly.

“Do you like that, love? I won’t know unless you tell me,” He pinched harder, earning a moan from underneath him.

“Fuck yes, Anders, that feels amazing,” He breathed heavily, kicking his legs out and curling his toes into the blankets on the bed.

“I want to fuck you tonight, love,” Anders murmured, leaning down, and taking one nipple in his mouth. He swirled his tongue around it while his hands roamed down Hawke’s body to his pajama pants.

“Please fuck me. Maker, Anders, _please_ ,” Spencer begged, his breath ragged just from the simple simulation from Anders hands and mouth on his nipples. It was satisfying to his lover that he could reduce such a bear to a whimpering mess.

“That can be arranged, only if you’re patient though,” Anders teased, pulling back from Hawke. He stared down at him for a moment, before burying his face into Spencer’s neck.

Hawke’s eyes rolled to the back of his head as Anders kissed and nibbled at his neck, his breath hot against his skin. Goosebumps began forming across his flesh and he tilted his head to give better access to his boyfriend.

While Anders worked at his neck and torso, Hawke blindly reached over to his nightstand, opening the drawer, and banging his knuckles against a sharp corner. He let out a hissed breath as he pulled out the lube and a condom.

“I’m guessing in your adventures to seduce me, you forgot the lubricant,” Hawke whispered, setting them on the bed next to him.

“And the condoms, yes,” He leaned back to grin lazily at Hawke, “But you didn’t seem to mind not having a condom last time we had sex,” He drawled.

Anders reached down and cupped Spencer’s dick through his pajama pants, his thumb extending to hook into the waistband of his pants and pull them down a little. Spencer moaned, his hands itching to grab any part of Anders’ body. He settled for his shirt, clawing to get it off so he could feel the soft skin underneath. He ached to touch his boyfriend.

Anders stopped in what he was doing while Hawke pulled the shirt off and ran his hands up and down his boyfriend’s tanned upper half. His fingers teased at his lover’s nipples, but moved past them as he dragged his nails down to Anders’ pants. Anders let out a gasp that ended in a whimper, outstretching his arm, he picked up the lube. He placed the bottle in his mouth and scooted up so he was sitting on Hawke’s stomach. He leaned back and pulled Hawke’s pants down his ankles.

Once he was naked, Anders got off the bed and made a little show of stripping out of his pants. Once he had Spencer’s full attention, he smirked, “On your hands and knees.”

“Maker, I love it when you get assertive,” Hawke mumbled, doing as he was told.

It was an embarrassing position, to say the least. But he asked Anders do it, so he should expect no less when it came to himself. There was no shame between him and Anders now, he hoped. He had seen every part of Anders body there is to see and vice versa.

“Yes, just like that, love,” Anders purred, his voice turning husky.

Spencer heard the familiar click of the bottle opening, and it wasn’t long before he felt something wet press against his entrance. He looked over his shoulder momentarily. Anders was looking at Hawke, as if asking for permission. In response, he pushed back against his boyfriend, going back to looking at the bed. He buried his face in the comforter as Anders forced one finger inside him. He let out a whimper that was muffled by the blanket, rocking his hips slightly. Anders moved his finger around, before adding another finger inside him. Another moan escaped Spencer’s lips, though it was barely heard through the bed. Anders twisted his fingers around to hit a particularly sensitive spot inside Hawke, causing him to cry out.

“Does that feel good? You love it when I fuck you with my fingers, don’t you?” Anders growled, inserting third finger.

Hawke couldn’t answer him, he was out of breath and his cock ached to be touched. He ran his fingers through his hair and reached down to pump his dick a couple times. He knew he couldn’t do it long, because Anders noticed and quickly shooed him away. Anders leaned over his lover, giving Hawke’s back a long kiss before removing his fingers. Spencer was now covered in a thin film of sweat, his skin slick.

“Are you ready, love?” Anders questioned gently, moving to swirl his tongue down Hawke’s back in obscure patterns.

With a shudder, Hawke lifted his head, “Yes, please fuck me now, Anders.”

Not needing much more incentive than that, Anders opened the condom and slid it over his dick. He added a bit of lube to it. He then positioned himself in front of Hawke, pressing the tip of his cock to his entrance. He pushed himself inside of Spencer to the tip, earning a painful whimper from his lover. Anders forced his cock a bit further into Hawke until he was halfway in. Spencer was breathing rapidly now, his lips open.

“It’s ok, love,” Anders murmured soothingly, pressing another kiss to Spencer’s back.

It took a few agonizing seconds of adjustment for Hawke, before he was ready to swallow Anders up to the hilt. He glanced over his shoulder at his boyfriend, who was waiting for some kind of signal.

“Fuck me,” Spencer finally gasped out, clutching the sheets in his hands.

Anders closed his eyes before burying himself into Spencer with a long, satisfied moan. He placed his hands on his boyfriend’s hips and gripped them tightly. It was one thing to be the bottom, but being the top felt so amazing as well. The feeling of power and dominance, as well as seeing your lover a hot mess, was intoxicating. Anders could never get tired of hearing Spencer moan out his name as he made love to him.

With a grunt, Anders pulled almost all the way out before thrusting himself back in. Hawke let out a strangled cry, arching his back and moving his hips back to get more of Anders inside of him. Anders obliged, rolling his hips to get into a more fluid motion. Spencer let out a sinful moan, his hand trailing down his torso and taking a hold of his leaking cock. The sounds of skin slapping against skin, moans, and the creaking bed filled the room. If their neighbors weren’t awake at this moment, they were now.

“ _Fuck_ , harder, Anders,” Hawke panted, stroking his shaft in time with Anders thrusts. Thank the Maker Anders was too lost in the sex, because Spencer couldn’t handle much more without touching himself. He felt Anders’ nails dig into his hips, and he loved it. He knew there would be marks there tomorrow.

“You feel so good, love. Can’t handle…much more,” Anders gasped out, his thrusts becoming more erratic and fast-paced.

“Come inside me,” Hawke groaned out in reply, tipping his head back as he neared his climax as well.

“ _Nmph_ … I’m gonna—ugh, _Spencer_ , FUCK,” Anders shouted as he came, his cock throbbing in Hawke’s ass.

It wasn’t long after that Spencer came as well, getting it all over his hands as well as the bed. Great. After a few seconds of catching his breath, Anders removed himself from Spencer’s back, taking off the condom and throwing it away, bringing his lover some tissues to clean himself off.

“I think you made a bit of a mess. If I get cold in the night, I know whose fault it is,” Anders teased, helping Hawke remove the sheets and put on new ones.

“Don’t worry love, you have me to keep you warm all night,” Spencer purred, running his hand over Anders' back to his ass.

“You stink, go take a shower,” Anders complained, pushing him away slightly with a small smile.

“You shouldn’t be able to smell me with all these candles going. I thought I smelled like spice apple toddy,” He retorted, heading towards the bathroom.

“Wait for me, love!”


	11. Cookies

### Chapter Eleven: _Cookies_

“What are you doing up this early? You usually sleep in on your days off,” Hawke asked Anders, who was kneading some kind of dough on the kitchen counter.

“I’m making cookie dough, love. See, look,” He jerked his head towards the magazine propped up next to him.

Hawke peered at it, squinting his eyes to read the tiny text, “Sugar cookies? Did you know those are my favorite cookies?”

“Hmmm…I might have heard something about that,” Anders hummed, not looking back at his boyfriend.

Spencer got his keys and wallet off the counter, pinching off a piece of the sugar cookie dough and popping it into his mouth. Anders whacked him in his arm, before turning to him for a goodbye kiss.

Hawke pecked his lips, “I’ll see you this afternoon,” He murmured, leaving the kitchen, and heading to the door.

“Have a good day at work!” Anders called after him, earning a long and loud sigh from his lover. After Spencer had left, Anders kept working on the dough, putting food coloring in some of the dough and then wrapping them up to cut into shapes later. He placed them in the fridge.

He wanted to make Christmas cookies because he wanted something from his old life. Being adopted was always hard, and he tried to keep the traditions his adoptive family taught him. Orchid always loved making cookies because she loved to cut up the different shapes and then decorating them all pretty. That was something they always did, and now he wanted to share it with his lover. Bethany had mentioned a while back that Spencer liked sugar cookies, so he made the sugar cookies. Though he really wanted to call Orchid and ask her about the recipe, but he felt his courage slipping as he picked up the phone for the first time. He hadn’t talked to her since when he first knew that Karl moved to Kirkwall. And that was at least two years ago. Did she even know he was alive? Was she worried about him, was her family, their family, worried about him?

He went out into the living room, his hand reaching into his pocket to press against his phone. How long had he wanted to call his adoptive family? He had never really thought about it, but there was so much they didn’t know that he should tell them. Where would he even start? 

“Havoc, you want to go outside?” He went over to the dog, who immediately perked up and started wagging her stump of a tail.

He found her leash and put it on her, before leaving the apartment to take her out. When Hawke first moved into his apartment, he was so overjoyed. He loved this man so much, and it was honestly scary to him. They have been dating for almost a year now, but how could you ask something so big to someone you only knew for such a short time? He wondered if they should get a house, to make more room for themselves and settle their roots. How could he ever bring that up though without sounding weird?

“Should I call Orchid, girl?” Anders asked the Mabari hound, scratching her head with a sigh.

Havoc happily went out the door to the outside and made her way down the stairs, sniffing around to do her business. Anders ran his fingers through his hair with a sigh, digging his phone out of his pocket. He needed to call her, it was important for her to know he was ok. It was his family, they raised him, he owed them that much.

After Havoc did her business, they headed back inside, where Anders proceeded to plop down on the couch and stare at his phone. He sat like that for a good half an hour, his mind fighting with itself on what to do.

Finally, he unlocked his phone and pulled up her number, dialing it. With a small gasp, he almost hung up. What was he going to say?! He pressed it to his ear quickly, listening to the dial tone. Maybe she was at work? Where did she work now?

When he thought it was about to go to voicemail, someone picked up.

“Hello?” Came a familiar voice.

Anders went silent, all the sentences he could have formed disappearing.

“Orchid?” He whispered, his voice wavering.

There was a pause and some shuffling in the background, before she finally answered, “Anders?”

“Uh, hi,” He mumbled shyly, curling his legs up and digging his toes into the couch.

“Anders, is that really you?”

“It’s really me, Orchid. I’m actually calling you. What a surprise, eh?”

“What the _FUCK_ , Anders?! You leave for Kirkwall for a stupid guy you dated in high school, and then you literally disappear off the map! I tried calling you so many times, I even tried to stop by your apartment, but they said no one lived there anymore! You need to explain yourself pretty quick, before I have to come make a visit.”

He shrunk back, “I didn’t intend for anything to happen like it did, honest. But don’t worry, I won’t be doing that anymore. I’m sorry I didn’t call you and made you worry.”

She let out a long sigh, “Mom and dad were worried too, I hope you know. Had better call them soon as well,” There was a pause, “So what happened after you got to Kirkwall?”

Anders explained what happened over the past two years, giving vague details about his love life so he could tell her last. He wasn’t sure how she would react to him having a boyfriend. She didn’t really like his last companion much.

“And now, I’ve found someone,” He murmured after he had explained everything else.

“Found someone? You just said that Karl rejected you.”

“The guy who went with me to see Karl, Spencer Hawke? Yeah, well, after what happened, we started dating. And we live together, Orchid.”

There was a long moment of silence, and Anders thought she hung up on him, but she spoke once again.  
“Do you love him, Anders?”

He swallowed hard, letting his head fall against the couch cushion as he debated what to say.

“Yes, I really think I do,” He whispered, his voice hoarse.

“And he makes you happy, I assume?”

“So much.”

“Then that’s all I can ask for. Though, when I come over for Christmas, I’m going to grill him like there’s no tomorrow!” She declared, and Anders knew she was probably grinning ear-to-ear.

“Wait, hold on, Christmas? You want to come over for Christmas?”

“Of course, I haven’t seen you in two years, brother! Christmas Eve is the perfect time to make a trip up to Kirkwall!”

“You really don’t have too-“

“Hey, I gotta go, my boss is calling me to a meeting. Send me your address because I am definitely coming over for dinner!” She hung up.

With a defeated sigh, Anders closed his eyes. Now he realized why he never called his sister. She was annoying as hell. With that thought, Anders began to drift off.

It felt like he only slept for a couple minutes, before he was shaken awake by a gentle hand.

“Sleep well, love?” Spencer stared down at him with a smile.

“Did I fall asleep? Must’ve worked too hard on those cookies,” He mumbled, stretching. Hawke placed a sweet kiss on his boyfriend’s lips, before pulling back to give him a pouty look.

“Did you cut out the cookies without me? You know that and decorating is my favorite part!”

“I’ll log that in my memory banks. But no, I didn’t cut them out yet, did you want to help, love?”

“Uh, yes please!”

“Well, let’s get started. I made a lot of dough.”


	12. Christmas Shopping

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, Hawke is me in this chapter. I hate shopping.
> 
> And there's a little homophobia in the beginning, just a warning.

### Chapter Twelve: _Christmas Shopping_

“I hate shopping,” Hawke groaned as they parked the car in front of the mall.

“I know you do, trust me, I know. But I need to shop for presents,” Anders replied, taking the keys out of the ignition and turning to look at Spencer.

“Are you gonna buy anything for me?” Spencer asked uncertainly.

Anders gave him a look, before he pressed his palm into Hawke’s face gently, pushing him back.

“Don’t be ridiculous, love. I’ll get your presents when you’re not with me,” He removed his seat-belt and got out of the car. Hawke followed suit, sticking out his tongue at Anders.

“Don’t pout like that, love. You’ll ruin your gorgeous looks,” Anders reached over and intertwined their fingers, pecking him on the cheek.

Spencer blushed and looked away, focusing on the door to the mall as they approached. There was a Salvation Army person ringing a bell by one of those buckets. She was a middle-aged adult, she looked pretty nice. Hawke usually didn’t give money to charities, but he was feeling generous today. He fished out his wallet and pulled a couple of dollars out, steering Anders towards the woman. With their hands still interlocked, they traveled over to the woman. Spencer smiled at her and put the money into the bucket. The woman glanced over at him, before doing a double take. Her eyes darted to Anders who was staring at the Christmas decorations in the window. She looked down at their hands, then at Hawke. Her face twisted up in disgust, which shocked Spencer.

“Let’s go inside,” Hawke quickly whispered to Anders, who gave him a confused look.

“Did you give some money?” He questioned as they went inside.

“I did, and I don’t think I will be doing it again,” He muttered, clenching his free fist.

Anders didn’t push it further, instead moving on to what he should get for Hawke’s friends and family.

“You don’t have to get them anything, love. We can pick out things to get them as a joint gift,” Hawke said, tapping his finger on his chin as they walked.

“I think Bethany would like some new accessories, like jewelry or a scarf? Carver might like a gift card to somewhere. Isabela likes jewelry as well, anything shiny really. Merrill will take about anything, but she likes herbs and cooking. Varric would probably want a new fountain pen, he likes to write with fancy utensils. Sebastian loves coffee, so maybe get him some good coffee beans. Aveline wants a new blanket, the last one I got her is already ripped. And Fenris probably wants a sketchpad or a new book to read!”

“And what do you want for Christmas, love?” Anders questioned, stopping in front of a jewelry store window.

Hawke pointed at a gold chain necklace, “Isabela would like that.”

“I don’t love Isabela that much,” Anders wrinkled his nose, bumping shoulders with him, “I love you that much though.”

“I don’t need any jewelry. I would never wear it,” Hawke responded, tugging on Anders hand to move him along. They would be in this mall all day if Anders kept browsing like he always did.

“Well then, humor me. What do you want for Christmas?”

“Hmmm… world peace, the cure for cancer, the secret to immortality?”

“I’m being serious, love. I won’t know unless you tell me,” Anders looked up at Spencer, who was looking towards a Disney store across the way.

“And I’m being serious when I say you don’t need to get me anything, love. When you get something for someone, they _have_ to get you something back. It’s not fair if you get me something really nice and I have no way to pay you back for it.”

Anders gave him an incredulous look, to which Spencer shrugged and pointed towards a coffee shop, “It’s just what I think. Let’s get Sebastian some coffee beans from there.”

They went over to the coffee shop, where the cheery woman at the counter gave them the ‘finest’ coffee beans that they sold. They weren’t too expensive, thank the Maker. Hawke would never live down getting Bethany’s boyfriend something way out of price range.

“So, when your mom asked you what you wanted for Christmas, what did you say to her?” Anders implored casually after they had left.

“When I was younger, I would ask for a lot of things, but as I grew older and learned more about the world, my view changed. I would only ask for a couple of things so I was able to buy things of equal value for her,” He explained, spotting a clothing store Bethany went in frequently.

“But I want to get something for you, something that you want! There isn’t a price on your happiness, love,” Anders retorted.

“I am happy, Anders. Being with you, doing all this Christmas stuff, even the shopping, makes me happy! You make me happy.”

Now it was Anders turn to blush as Hawke pulled his hand up and pressed his lips to his knuckles softly. A couple of teenagers whooped at them, making Spencer chuckle.

“Is it so wrong I want to get something for you anyways?” Anders muttered as they entered the girly store. 

Hawke surveyed the small aisles, finding where the scarves were, he went to them to find Bethany one. Anders stood beside him, pointing at a couple that he thought would look good on Bethany. There were so many options to pick from, it was crazy.

“So, you like dogs. Would you want a puppy for Christmas?” Anders prompted, glancing over at Spencer.

Hawke pulled out a purple and gold scarf, smiling. This was perfect for his sister. He then looked over at Anders, “I do love puppos, yes, but I don’t think we need another dog in your apartment. We are already squished in with just Havoc.”

“I suppose you’re right,” Anders muttered, slightly disappointed.

Hawke paid for the scarf, getting the article of clothing in a dainty red bag to carry. They moved on, Spencer’s feet already aching from the walking. He hated shopping immensely. Malls were so crowded and people were loud. The only good thing about malls were the food courts, but he doubted Anders came here to eat food.

“Don’t you like dragons as well? I could get you something with dragons,” Anders said.

“Hmmm, I do like dragons, but I wish you would stop pushing the present thing, love. I really don’t want anything from you.”

“I could give you myself for Christmas,” Anders murmured in a low voice, sending a small shiver down Spencer’s spine.

“If I can give myself back. Is that something you would like?” Hawke purred, removing his hand from Anders’ to run it over his boyfriend’s back.

“…No,” Anders moved away from Spencer with an amused smile.

Hawke let out a fake offended gasp, putting his hand over his heart, “How dare you, I am something to be cherished! I am a temple!”

A few girls overheard him and giggled, their eyes all over him. With nervous laughter, he scooted back over to Anders, taking his hand.

“Can we go home yet? We can get the rest of the presents later,” He whined, clasping Anders’ hand once again.

“If you really want too, love. We’ve only been here maybe an hour,” He responded with a sigh.

They were about to turn around, when Anders saw something out of the corner of his eye. With a sharp gasp, he tightened his grip on Spencer’s hand and started to drag him a different direction.

“What, what is it, Anders?”

He yanked him over to a window, where there were four kittens playing in a pen. A few people were gathered around, so much Hawke questioned how Anders saw them.

“I forgot you have kitten senses. Apparently, you always can sense when a kitten is nearby, they just flock to you.”

Anders just hummed in response, pushing past people to get to the front. Once there, he squatted down so he was level with the bottom of the window. He pressed his hand to the glass and cooed at an orange kitten, who looked at him with large blue eyes. Hawke watched in loving amusement. Why Anders loved cats so much, it was beyond him. Which gave him an idea! With a big grin, he remembered where this store was, for later use.

“We better go, love. These kids don’t look like the patient kind, and they might start beating us up if we’re not careful,” He urged his lover to his feet, guiding him away.

“Did you see the orange one? It reminded me of Mister Wiggums!” He said giddily, glancing back at the display.

“That cat was mean, though. At least the one in the window looked cute,” Hawke teased.

“Wiggums was cute, don’t lie!” Anders threatened lightly, slapping Spencer’s shoulder.

Spencer flicked his eyes towards a bright toy store, and his eyes lit up as he spotted something.

“Anders, look!” He pointed at a huge stuffed dog, one that looked exactly like Havoc. It was even the same size as her. Anders raised his eyebrows, before chuckling softly.

“Maybe I’ll get it for you for Christmas, love.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And a little piece of trivia, the way Spencer is acting is based on the real Spencer I know. The Spencer in real life doesn't like accepting gifts because he feels the need to pay the person back!


	13. Christmas Cards

### Chapter 13: _Christmas Cards_

“Aw crap,” Hawke groaned as he sipped his coffee.

Anders peered over next to him, looking down at his boyfriend's phone. Hawke was texting Bethany, and she was reminding him he had to send the Christmas card to Uncle Gamlen and Charade this year since she did it last year.

“You have an uncle?! Why have you never told me about him?” Anders implored, dramatically pressing his hand to his heart.

Hawke wrinkled his nose and set his phone down, staring at a weird abstract painting across the coffee shop, “I didn't tell you about him because he doesn't really talk with us. The only person who tell us he's alive is his daughter, Charade. She's a very sweet girl,” Hawke explained, his eyes moving down to his coffee which suddenly didn't taste very good anymore.

“There's something else, isn't there?” Anders pushed, snaking his arm around Spencer's.

“It's stupid, it's nothing, really,” Spencer mumbled, pushing away his half-eaten muffin.

“Tell me, love, whatever it is, you don't have to keep to yourself. It's clearly bothering you,” Anders murmured, intertwining their fingers and bringing Hawke's hand to his lips, kissing his knuckles.

“It's just that, we lived with Gamlen when my mom was sick. And Gamlen didn't really approve of me...dating men,” He muttered the last part, shaking his head furiously, “So when mother died, he kicked us out.” It looked like he wanted to elaborate further, but he snapped his jaw shut, swallowing hard.

Anders' heart twisted up in anger and grief for his lover. He loses his mother and then his uncle kicks him out for being gay? That's very cruel, especially for someone who has two siblings to take care of. He wanted to punch his uncle in the face, and he didn't even know him.

“Anyways, I have no hard feelings, we send the card for Charade. She loves hearing from us, and Bethany usually sends update letters to her as well,” Spencer cleared his throat and put on a smile that Anders knew was his plastic smile.

Hawke checked the time, sniffing and rubbing his eyes, “We better get back to work, love, don't want to be late.”

They left the coffee shop and headed back to work, where Hawke had to work for another 5 hours while Anders worked another 6. It was a slow day, with barely any receptionist duties, Hawke was forced to sit around and talk with Merrill. Merrill was chipper as always, discussing anything that popped into her head. His attention was on the clock though, as he counted down the minutes till he could go home. He wanted to wait around for Anders, since it seemed pretty tame today. Every time Anders passed the desk, he winked at Hawke or made some kind of remark that made Merrill giggle and elbow Spencer. 

It was when Spencer was packing up and putting on his winter coat when Merrill spoke up again.

“How is your relationship going, Spencer? I know you had a rough patch early on.”

“With Anders? It's great, and I'm glad I have him in my life. He makes me happy,” Hawke said with a small smile.

“That's adorable. You know I am so happy for you two, I knew things would work out for the best,” Merrill grinned widely, before going back to typing up a report.

“Thanks Merrill,” Spencer gave her a quick hug from behind, before going to clock out.

What was he going to write in the Christmas card to Gamlen and Charade? He should probably have Bethany send a different letter that actually has an update on their life, so the Christmas card isn't filled to the brim. He thought about sending cards to everyone. He had plenty of cards for Christmas in his closet, courtesy of his mom. She loved sending Christmas cards to friends and family. He shook his head and smiled.

“I guess you're off work, love?” He jumped and nearly hit his head on the time clock. Hawke turned around to see a disheveled Anders, who was washing his hands at the break room sink.

“Yeah, I got off at 7, remember?” He teased, clearing his throat.

“I should be getting off at 8, so you can wait around if you want,” Anders turned to smile at his boyfriend. Hawke swallowed hard, his eyes darting to Anders' lips. Maker, he loved this man's smile so much. No, not just his smile, his lips in general. 

“Do I have something on my face?” Anders joked, pressing two fingers to his lips.

“N-no, I was just...thinking about your lips!” He blurted out, before face-palming. Great recovery, Spencer, A+.

Anders moved closer, a chuckle escaping his lips as he approached Hawke. Spencer backed up slightly, hitting the wall. Anders moved closer, till their bodies were inches away. Flustered, Hawke's eyes darted to anywhere but his boyfriend's face.

“My lips, eh? Do you like them?” Anders questioned nonchalantly.

“Um...what will happen if I say yes?” Hawke laughed nervously, swallowing.

“Hmmm, I don't know, we are in a public place, as well as the establishment we both work at. It probably wouldn't be good if you fucked me on one of these tables,” He tapped his chin.

“You're the one who usually says no fraternizing at work, are you sure you want to throw that rule out the window?” Hawke asked, gently putting his hand on Anders chest to keep him away.

“No, I'm not saying that, love. You're just so fucking adorable, I have to kiss you,” He took a hold of Spencer's hand on his chest, grabbing the other in the process. He pinned both hands to the wall, leaving his boyfriend fully exposed to his lips. Even though he was slightly taller than him, that didn't mean they had the same strength.

“That's a dirty play, you're going to get us both in trouble,” Hawke hissed, struggling half-heartedly against Anders' strong grip.

Anders casually leaned forward, his lips lingering inches from Hawke's. That only lasted a second, because apparently Spencer had less self-control than Anders does. Spencer pulled his head forward and locked lips with his lover.

Anders' lips tasted exactly like they always did, of his vanilla chapstick and a hint of apple. A small moan escaped his lips as they exchanged passionate kisses. Spencer opened his mouth and their tongues met, exploring one another. Spencer wrapped his arms around Anders', reaching up and running his fingers through his golden hair lovingly, accidentally pulling out his ponytail in the process. Anders removed his lips from Hawke's to kiss down his neck, softly biting here and there to leave little red marks. They stayed like that for a couple moments, before there was a huge audible gasp at the door. Startled, Hawke's eyes flicked towards the source while Anders jumped back like he'd been zapped. A poor nurse was standing there, looking down at the floor with a very VERY red face.

“I'm sorry, Dr. A, but we need you back in Room 101,” She mumbled to the tiled floor.

Anders smoothed back his now-loose hair, which was sticking up in different directions from Hawke's comb-through.

“Yes, let's head over there now,” He looked back at Hawke, “You can go ahead and head home, love. I'll be home as soon as possible,” His eyes darted down to his lover's crotch, before he turned back to the nurse.

He followed the flustered nurse out, and Hawke finally let out all his breath. He raked his fingers through his unruly hair with a small sigh. His boyfriend was such a horny man sometimes, it was a turn-on and a horrible quirk at the same time.

He left the hospital, heading home immediately so he could write out the Christmas cards before Anders came home like a hurricane. He giggled as he thought of a pun he had heard from Isabela at one point. Bang that man like a door in a hurricane? Yeah, that was accurate in this scenario.

“Havoc, I'm home,” He called as he entered the apartment. Havoc happily ran over, her butt wiggling with joy as he knelt down and gave her pets. After she was satisfied with his loving, he went into the storage closet to get out the Christmas cards. He had everyone's addresses in his phone, thank the Maker. He would hate to have to call everyone to ask for their addresses. He set out the cards and a pen, sitting down at the dining room table.

He picked out a card for each friend, before deciding to send Charade and Gamlen the one with golden snowflakes on it. He opened the card, pressing the pen to the card before writing, 

'Dear Charade and Uncle Gamlen,  
Everything is good here.  
Merry Christmas!  
Love, Spencer, Bethany, and Carver'.


	14. Christmas Market

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had no idea what a Christmas Market was, so I'm sorry if it's not really what happens at them. I looked it up and wrote this to the best of my ability! :D

### Chapter 14: _Christmas Market_

“What's a Christmas market?” Anders questioned with a cautious voice.

Hawke looked up from his wallet with a horrified expression, “You don't know what a Christmas Market is?”

“Is it like a place where they sell Christmas decorations really cheap and stuff?”

“No! It's like a fair, it has stalls and music and dancing! There aren't many in Ferelden, they mostly do them in Orlais. But Kirkwall has a huge Christmas market in the middle of town!” Hawke excitedly shoved his wallet in his pocket and turned to Anders.

“That sounds...crowded,” Anders responded, rubbing his arm.

“It's a Wednesday, love, it won't be that busy today!” Hawke grinned and put his hands together in a begging motion, “Please come along with us.”

“Who else is going again?”

“Bethany, Carver, and Fenris,” Hawke repeated.

Anders snorted, crossing his arms with an incredulous look, “I can't believe you got Carver _AND_ Fenris to go to this. Your powers of persuasion are too much.”

“Well Carver always goes with us to the Christmas market, and it didn't take much for Fenris to come along. I just promised him something.”

“Should I be worried you promised something to him? You didn't promise sexual favors or to marry him when you become of age, I hope,” Anders teased.

“No, love, those are both reserved for you,” Spencer replied, winking, “I just told him that I would buy him a new sketchbook.”

Anders blushed and looked away from Hawke, over to Havoc who was snoring on the couch. Spencer was wondering what he said to make him all flustered, but he didn't get the chance, because his phone started playing 'Bubblegum Bitch' by Marina and the Diamonds. Anders laughed and raised his eyebrow as Hawke dug his phone out of his pocket.

“What? It's Carver,” He explained, answering.

While Anders was cracking up, Hawke said “Hello?”

“Hey, it's Carver.”

“Well no shit, Sherlock, didn't take much for me to figure that out.”

“Yeah, whatever, fuck you too. We're parked in front of your apartment, could you hurry up and get down here?” There was some yelling in the background and he heard his brother sigh, “And Bethany said to bring Anders if he wants to come along, but I say you don't have too.”

“Anders is coming along, don't you worry your pretty little head, brother. We'll be down in a couple minutes,” He hung up and turned to Anders, who was trying to rein in his giggles.

“Are you done laughing at my horribly crafted brother joke? We need to get going,” Hawke urged, going over to the couch to get his boots.

“I'm sorry, love, I don't know why I found that so funny. It's just...your brother really is a bitch!” He started laughing again, rubbing his eyes. Hawke sat down in a recliner and slipped his boots on over his socks. He tied them up and sat back to watch Anders try to control his breathing. 

“If you're finally done laughing, let's go,” Hawke stood up, before he glanced down at his boyfriend's feet. He didn't have any shoes on, dammit.

“Please put some shoes on so we can go!” Hawke pleaded, leading Anders over to the couch and pulling his boots from behind the couch.

“I'm sorry, I'm ok now, love. Hand me my shoes please,” Anders reached out for his boots, but Hawke yanked them back from his grip.

“I'll put them on for you,” He murmured, getting down onto his knees in front of Anders. Anders watched him, his full focus now on his lover in front of him. Pleased with that thought, Spencer softly pushed Anders' pant leg up to his knee. He placed a chaste kiss on his knee, before lifting his foot to place another kiss on it. Finally, he slipped the boot on and tied it up, giving the same treatment to the other leg.

“You're so sappy sometimes, love. It makes me love you even more,” Anders whispered, leaning down to his height to give him a quick peck.

“I try,” Hawke replied sheepishly, scrambling to his feet as Anders got up.

“I do love you on your knees, though in different circumstances,” Anders murmured as they left the apartment, giving his boyfriend's ass a firm pinch. Spencer yelped and glared over at Anders.

“And now you've ruined it,” Hawke confirmed, walking ahead of him.

“Don't worry, I love watching you from behind,” Anders called up to him. They left the apartment building and went down the outside stairs to the running car in front of the building. Carver was actually driving, which frightened Hawke.

“Sweet Maker, Bethany, you're letting Carver drive? Do you want us to die?” Spencer asked as they approached the car.

Bethany ducked down so she could see Hawke out of the driver side window, “He has been doing better, he only almost killed us once this whole ride!”

“My whole life flashed before my eyes,” Fenris rolled down his window, poking his head out and glaring at the back of Carver's head.

“My head feels like it's burning, is that Fenris giving me demon eyes?” Carver tried to turn around to glare back at Fenris, but Bethany patted his leg.

“You guys gotta sit in the back, I'm not moving!” Bethany declared, settling back into her seat.

“You just like sitting in the heated seats up front!” Hawke accused her, going over to the other side of the car and opening the door to get in.

“Are you sure you want to sit in the middle? You are a bear,” Fenris pointed out, grinning.

“Hey! I take offense to that!”

“You're like a teddy bear, love. A teddy bear with sharp teeth,” Anders patted his arm as Spencer got in next to Fenris.

“A real ferocious tiger,” Fenris added, amused.

“When we you ever let me live that down, Fenris?” Hawke turned his puppy-dog eyes to the man.

“When it stops being funny,” He replied, moving his eyes away from Hawke's face so to not get trapped by the puppy eyes.

With a sigh, Spencer turned his gaze over to Anders, who was looking out the window at the passing scenery of Kirkwall. Which was pretty much dull buildings and the occasional shrubbery. Hawke placed his hand on Anders knee, making him jump slightly as he turned to him with a small smile.

“You know I love you, right?” Hawke murmured, squeezing his knee.

Before Anders could even get a word out, Carver slammed on the brakes at a red-light, which left Spencer almost in the front seat.

“God dammit, Carver! Do you want me in your lap?!” Spencer snapped, rubbing his throbbing shin which he banged against the cup holder.

“Nevermind that, did I hear you say something with the L word, Spencer?!” Bethany turned to stare at him excitedly.

“What, I uh, what are you talking about, Beth?”

“Don't try to deny it, brother. We all heard you tell Anders that you loved him,” Carver looked at him through the mirror.

Hawke glanced over at Fenris, who nodded as well. He dropped his head and rubbed his face with a free hand.

“Yes, I did say I loved Anders, is that alright with you all?!” He asked, his face turning red.

“Of course!”  
“I don't care.”  
“Whatever.”

With that settled, the car went on in silence, no more incidents with driving happening. 

“I love you too, Spencer,” Anders whispered, placing his hand over Hawke's.

A grin settled on his face as they pulled onto main street. Kirkwall was lit up beautifully with twinkling white and gold lights, and stalls were littered across the park in front of town hall. It wasn't very big in comparison to the ones Hawke had seen in Orlais, but it was cozy. They could get some food and watch some people dance, and maybe they could find some gifts.

“Isabela might like something from here. She usually goes with us, but when I called her, she was in Ferelden somewhere,” Spencer mumbled to Anders.

Once they were parked and everyone was out of the car, the first place Carver wanted to go was a food stall because he was starving. It seemed everyone was agreement, so they had to pick between all the food stalls there were.

“I like the seafood stand,” Bethany pointed towards one with a grill.

“I hate fish,” Fenris wrinkled his nose and pointed towards a brightly lit stall with a menu of junk food. 

“How about that one?”

“I don't think my brother needs to get any bigger than he already is, I want a burger,” Carver said.

“Hey!”

“How about that one over there,” Anders piped up, pointing at a little stall on the end that was selling tropical food.

“Oh, I love tropical food!” Bethany gushed.

With a sigh, Carver nodded.

“I love all kinds of food, you know,” Hawke said to his boyfriend.

“As long as I get a funnel cake before we go,” Fenris said.

They traveled over to the stall where the lady gladly took all their orders and took their money. Looks like she hadn't had much business tonight and they were her first customers. She had the food ready quickly, thanking them for choosing her stall. Once they had all their food, they went to a pavilion where picnic tables were set up next to a band playing Christmas music.

“This is really nice,” Anders said to Hawke after they had sat down.

“I told you it would be, I love the Christmas market,” Spencer said through a mouthful of pulled pork and plantains.

“Our dad used to take us when we were younger, and it kind of just stuck,” Bethany said next to Spencer, smiling fondly.

“His grandparents were Orlesian, and they would take him when he was younger,” Carver mumbled through his chewing.

“Seems like this is something special to you guys, I'm glad you let me come along,” Anders confided shyly, poking at his food.

“You are in a relationship with our brother, Anders! You're apart of the family!” Bethany reached over and put her hand over Anders', earning a blush from the man.

“That's debatable,” Carver swallowed his food, glaring over at his brother's boyfriend.

“I am also glad that you let me come as well,” Fenris spoke after being silent for most of the time. He had eaten all of his food during their little talk.

“You're my best friend, of course I want you to come along!” Spencer grinned at Fenris, who smirked and looked away almost immediately.

“Friends are family as well, Fenris,” Bethany pointed out.

“Better you than Anders,” Carver added, to which Bethany gave him a good slap on the back of his head.

The tune of the song changed, earning a sharp gasp from Bethany. She stood up lightning fast and turned to Hawke, who looked up at her with raised eyebrows. She put out her hand, “You're taking me to dance, this is my favorite Christmas song.”

“I'm not finished eating,” He protested, but she glared at him with pursed lips. He groaned and stood up, taking her dainty hand. 

“I didn't know you had a favorite Christmas song,” Spencer mumbled as they went over to the open space next to the band.

“Every Christmas song is my favorite song, Spencer,” She laughed, placing one of his hands on her waist and the other in her hand. “You remember how to dance, brother? You used to let me stand on your feet when I was little.”

“You can't stand on them now,” He stated quickly, starting to sway to the music with his sister.

“Shut up, you're the worst,” She said with a giggle, letting her older brother spin her around.

“So, how does it feel to be in loooooove?” Bethany questioned in a teasing manner.

“Why are you asking, wanting pointers on how to approach your Chantry boy?”

“He isn't a Chantry boy, don't call him that!” Bethany whined, stepping on his foot.

“You're a very violent sister, you know that right? I've got more bruises from you hitting me than hickies from Anders. And that's a lot.”

“Ah! I don't want to hear it, stop talking!”

“I could tell you about the time we had sex on the dining room table...”

“I will stomp on your foot again!” She yelled, scowling at him, “I don't want to hear about your sex life, I wanted to know about your relationship!”

“Relationships involve sex, Beth,” He reminded her.

“Not all the time, dear brother.”

“May I cut in?” A voice behind them made them stop. Hawke turned to look at Anders, who was smiling at his lover. Bethany stepped back, nodding and gracefully curtsying.

Anders took a hold of Spencer's hand, gripping his waist, he moved them into a slow dance.

“I could hear you talking about hickies all the way over at the table, love. Carver almost choked on his drink. Anything you care to share?” He leaned his head over till he was whispering in Hawke's ear.

“Not unless you want me to undress. Well, I do have a few from work,” He pulled his t-shirt collar down slightly to show off a couple purple spots around his neck and collar bone.

“No, that's not what I meant,” Anders chuckled, his hand creeping up from its spot on Hawke's waist, trailing up his back and sending small electric pulses through Hawke's body. His cheeks started to turn rosy as he stared down at Anders, who was humming along with the music as they danced. His hand finally reached the back of Spencer's neck, where he cupped it softly, pulling Hawke down to his height with surprising force. Their lips met in a sweet lingering kiss. They parted after a few moments before pecking lips a couple more times as if they couldn't get enough.

“Boo! Get off the stage, you're disgusting!” Hawke heard Carver's voice.

“At least I have someone to kiss!” Spencer yelled back, earning a snort from Fenris, who was sipping at his drink.

Anders removed his hands from his boyfriend with a smug grin. He never tired of kissing those lips, that was for sure.

“So, let's go look at some more stalls, I gotta find something shiny for Isabela!” Hawke announced, earning cheers from everyone.


	15. Presents

### Chapter Fifteen: _Presents_

“I'm going to go to work now, I expect all the presents to be wrapped when I get home,” Anders said as he poured himself some tea from his old beat-up kettle. He turned to Hawke, who was sleepily fumbling with the coffee machine. Anders rubbed his back and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, “I'll see you tonight, love. Figure out what you want for dinner and I'll bring it home.”

“Okay, I love you,” Spencer mumbled, returning the kiss before going back to the coffee machine.

“I love you too. Get the presents done!” Anders poked him in the side, before leaving the kitchen. Hawke heard the door open and close, then lock. 

With a sigh, he rubbed his eyes a couple of times and checked the actual time. It was around eight in the morning, and Anders wouldn't be back till around five or six. He was instructed to wrap presents and put them somewhere until they got the Christmas tree up. Why his boyfriend wanted to get presents wrapped before putting up the tree was beyond him, but he didn't really question.

He poured his coffee, taking a small sip to gauge how hot it was, burning his tongue in the process. He added some sugar to his coffee and then went out into the living room. Havoc was laying on the couch, and she wagged her tail as he approached. He plopped down next to her, petting her head and yanking the remote out from under her butt.

He set his coffee on the table next to the couch and turned on the TV. He flipped it to the news, where a woman was describing how aliens attacked her. Hawke let out a snort and tipped sideways, laying his head on Havoc's body, her tail hitting his rib-cage. He didn't plan on falling asleep, but as soon as he closed his eyes, he was gone.

Maker knows how long he slept, but he felt Havoc leave after a while, letting his head hit the couch with a thud. Finally, he felt his phone buzz against his side, rousing him from a peaceful sleep. He groggily sat up, scratching his head and stretching. He reached for his coffee and took a sip, and gagged on it as it was ice cold. 

He checked the time and saw it was almost noon, and Anders had texted him a couple times. He opened up the messages to see.

Anders: _Wish I was home. I want to wrap presents with you. :(_  
Anders: _That nurse that saw us making out the other day asked where you were_  
Anders: _[Attachment] Miss you_

Hawke furrowed his eyebrows, opening up the picture. Anders was in the locker room next door to the break room, and he had his shirt off for Maker knows what reason. He was lightly pulling his pants down, just enough to see the beginning of the blonde hair trailing down from his belly button into his trousers. Hawke swallowed hard.

Me: _Please tell me you were alone, I will not be responsible for getting you fired_

He stood up and stretched further, clapping his hands together. He needed to get those presents wrapped or else he would feel the wrath of his lover when he got home. He went over to the storage closet, pulling out the bags of presents he and Anders had gotten over the past couple of days. They had gotten presents for everyone, and now Hawke had to wrap them all. He set the bags down in the living room floor, before going back to get the wrapping paper.

He had a large container specifically for wrapping paper, and it was heavy with all the paper he actually had. He grabbed the tape from the counter and the scissors as well, before heading out into the living room for a final time. He opened the container and rubbed his chin as he looked at his vast collection of Christmas paper. Some of it was Bethany's, but most of it was his when he bought it during post-Christmas sales.

He was getting down onto the floor when his phone quacked. He unlocked it and sighed. Anders had replied.

Anders: _I was alone love. I had to put a new shirt on because a nurse dropped a blood bag and it splattered_  
Me: _Good, I'm the only one who should see you topless_

Hawke put down his phone and started removing the presents from their bags and separating them by who they were going too. They bought Bethany that scarf as well a new pair of earrings. They got Carver a gift card to McDonald's. Isabela was getting stick-on golden body jewelry and a new belly ring she pointed out to Hawke earlier in this month. Hawke had saw a beautiful silver fountain pen and bought it on impulse for Varric. Merrill was getting herbal tea and a new pot. Sebastian was getting his coffee and Spencer had bought him a gag gift of a gift card to the coffee shop he worked at. They also got Aveline a queen size fuzzy blanket and a charm bracelet. And lastly, Hawke had picked up a sketchbook and new sketching pencils for Fenris.

He picked out different wrapping paper for each present, as well as a couple bags for the harder things to wrap. Each one reflected the person he was wrapping for. Now, Hawke wasn't the best at doing delicate things such as wrapping gifts. He had larger hands than some, so he had a hard time getting tape off the dispenser and putting it where he wanted. He ended up tearing the paper a couple of time, having to either replace the whole sheet or put a smaller piece over the hole. For Carver's gift-card, he wrapped it up and proceeded to wrap it in tape for shits and giggles. 

Once all the presents were wrapped, Hawke put them back where they were before and he tapped his chin. What was missing….hmm, he felt like he was forgetting something. He checked the time and saw it was around three, and he had another text from his boyfriend.

Anders: _Of course, I don't walk around shirtless like you do. ;)_

That's right! Spencer audibly gasped as he stared down at his phone. He hadn't gotten anything for Anders yet! For his boyfriend! And Christmas was ten days away! He slapped a hand over his mouth as he made a beeline for the bedroom. He needed to go out right now and scour the shops for something perfect for his lover. He knew the big gift he wanted to get Anders, but he needed to buy some smaller things for him. Maybe he could get him a new kettle!

As he got dressed, he quickly texted Anders.

Me: _I'm going out, I don't know if I'll be home when you get here. I want Chinese for dinner :3_

Anders texted back immediately.

Anders: _Chinese sounds good, I'll stop and get it on my way home. See you when you come home :)_

With a small smile to his phone, Spencer slipped on his coat and boots and ran out the door.


	16. Christmas Tree

### Chapter Sixteen: _Christmas Tree_

“Good morning, love, ” Hawke greeted his boyfriend as he entered the kitchen, "you slept awfully late this morning."

“I had a long day at work yesterday, I'm allowed to sleep on my days off,” Anders muttered, reaching under his shirt and scratching his stomach.

“Well, I made some eggs for breakfast if you want some,” Spencer said, nodding towards a plate with a piece of toast and some scrambled eggs.

“Thanks love,” Anders gave him a quick peck on the cheek and took the plate gratefully, heading into the living room.

“I'm getting out Christmas decorations today. We have a lot of decorating to do,” Hawke called after him, putting his dish in the dishwasher and heading over to the storage closet.

“I suppose we're doing the Christmas tree today as well?” Anders replied.

“Yep, do you want a live tree or do you want to use my fake one?” Spencer questioned, digging through the tubs to find the one that was labeled Christmas.

“You can use fake trees for Christmas?” Anders wondered in a confused tone.

Hawke finally found what he was looking for, pulling out the long box, he brought it out into the living room, Anders giving the box a curious look. He plopped it down on the floor and opened it, showing the faux branches and stand inside.

“Have you never seen an artificial Christmas tree before?” Hawke implored, getting out the pieces to match together.

“Never. My family...we always used real Christmas trees. My father always took us all out to chop down a tree together,” He explained.

“I've only had a real tree once, and it died because we didn't keep it watered. After that, my mom swore we would only use artificial trees, and I just… followed the tradition,” Hawke glanced at the growing tree fondly. This was his mother's as well, and well, it was getting old, but he still loved it.

“Well, I don't mind using a faux tree, it's probably a lot easier than going out to look for a real one,” Anders said, rubbing his chin.

“Your damn right it is, and it does actually look like a Christmas tree!” He started assembling the tree, matching the branches together and putting them on the stand. Some people used pre-lit trees to make it even easier, but Hawke found those types boring. Putting on lights was one of the fun things to do with decorations. He neatly put the top on the tree, pointing the one at the top up for the angel. Once he was done, he turned to Anders to see what he thought.

Anders had his eyebrows raised as he appraised the tree, “Well...it looks semi-real, love. I can definitely tell it's not real though.”

“You don't like it.”

“I didn't say that! It looks fine, love. It will look even better covered in decorations,” He confirmed, giving his boyfriend a heart-melting grin.

Spencer nodded and looked back at the tree, “Can you help me decorate? I usually have Bethany over to help, but she's at her work right now.”

“Of course, Spencer, I'd love to help,” He heard Anders get up and then arms wrapped around him from his backside.

Anders pressed a kiss to Spencer's neck, setting his chin on his lover's shoulder, “I can't wait to put all the presents underneath it, then it will be a little more festive in here.”

“I can't believe we waited this long to put up the tree. I usually have it up at the beginning of December,” Hawke said, eying the box of tree decorations on the floor.

“We could've put it up anytime, it just seems like time is dragging. I feel like today should be the 20th, not the 16th,” Anders mumbled.

“I think it's because you've been home so much.”

“I need to use all my vacation days, they don't roll over, love,” Anders reminded him, stepping back from his boyfriend.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm going to get out the lights while you put your plate in the dishwasher,” Spencer said, going over to the tub he set down by the tree. It was labeled Christmas all over, probably courtesy of Bethany when she was younger. He took the lid off and surveyed what was in there. There was a bag of ornaments, which he set aside for last. And in the bottom was a tangle of lights that went on a house and on a tree. He had to figure out which went where. He had a task ahead of him.

“Need some help untangling?” Anders asked as he entered the living room once again.

“No, love, I got this. You wanna shower?”

“I guess I will if you don't want help with that big ball of lights.”

“I'll untangle while you're in the shower and we can decorate when you're done,” Hawke confirmed, moving to sit on the couch with his big ball of lights.

“Alright, I'll be in the shower then,” Anders went into the bedroom, Spencer hearing the shower turn on moments later. He secretly wished he could get in the shower with his lover, but pushed it away. He had Christmas lights in his hands, he couldn't pop a boner right now. He had a job to do.

“Dammit,” He mumbled, fumbling with the knots. He shook, looped, threw, and untangled the lights. It was very intense work, and when he was done, he counted five sets of lights. Three for the tree and two for outside. The ones for the tree were multicolor while the others were white. He sighed in relief and threw down the lights, leaning back into the couch to take a breather. Now he realized why those pre-lit Christmas trees were popular. He was already worn out untangling.

“Alright, are you ready to put on the lights then?” Anders came out into the living room, and he was wearing one of Hawke's t-shirts and then a pair of sweatpants.

“Why do you feel the need to steal my clothing?! Do you not have articles of clothing to yourself?” Spencer whined, standing up and moving towards his boyfriend.

“I do, but your clothing is just so comfortable,” He squeezed the fabric in his hands, grinning at Spencer, “I look pretty sexy in them too, don't I?”

Hawke swallowed hard and turned towards the lights, “You said it, not me.”

Anders let out a ' _hmph_ ', then rounded Spencer, standing in front of him with a smirk.

“If you want, we can play around with these lights. I don't think we've ever tried bondage before,” Anders picked up the end of some lights innocently, bending down to show off his ass to his lover.

“Stop distracting me, love. I want to decorate the tree, not myself,” He croaked in response, his eyes flicking towards Anders' ass.

“Aw, you always ruin my fun,” Anders pouted, before picking up the Christmas lights and taking them over to the tree.

Swallowing hard and repositioning himself in his pajama pants, he traveled over to the tree, plugging in the lights and wrapping them around the tree with Anders' help. It didn't take long to get the lights on, what took a bit longer was the ornaments, because Hawke had so many.

“These are really strange ornaments, love,” Anders picked up a Santa Claus that had on beach attire, hanging it on the tree.

“A lot of them are things Bethany and Carver made, but others are just ornaments I found funny,” Spencer explained, picking up a wreath ornament that Bethany made and hanging it up.

“Like the dog one?” Anders pointed out, showing him the puppy inside a wreath.

“It's cute! Bethany got it for me one year!” He defended himself.

“That's positively the cutest,” Anders responded in a sarcastic manner, earning a hurt gasp from Hawke.

“Don't hate on my puppo ornaments, Anders! You know I love dogs.”

“You just said puppo. Love, please, don't say that ever again,” Anders pleaded, picking up a roughly drawn Christmas tree Carver had made and hanging it up.

“But I love saying puppo. C'mon,” Hawke whined.

Anders let out a groan, rolling his eyes dramatically. They ended up spending an hour decorating the tree, making small talk here and there. Once they were done, the tree looked stunning in Hawke's eyes. Anders gazed at it with an awed look, and Spencer was happy he liked it so much. This was their tree now, the one they would use every year they were together.

Spencer wrapped his arms around Anders' stomach and nuzzled his neck, “Do you like it?”

“It looks wonderful, love. I'm glad we decorated it together,” Anders replied, a smile on his lips.

“Me too.”

“Now about that bondage I was talking about earlier...”


	17. Decorations

### Chapter Seventeen: _Decorations_

“Just call out, Bethany, I doubt your boss will mind for one day!” Penelope exclaimed, gripping her phone tightly.

“I just can’t, Pen. With Christmas coming around soon, the shop is really busy. I can’t skip another day,” Bethany replied.

“You’re really lame, you know that?” Hawke sighed, rubbing her temples, and glancing over at the decorations she had set out.

“It’s only one year that I’m not decorating with you, sister. Get your hubby to help you.”

“First of all-“ She paused, looking around to make sure Fenris wasn’t nearby, “He’s not my husband! And secondly, it’s tradition, Beth! You and Carver always come over, and now neither of you can come?!”

She heard Bethany move the phone over to her other ear with an audible sigh, “Penelope, we’re all grown adults now, sometimes we can’t make time for those old traditions. I’m sorry, I gotta go, I’m gonna be late for work,” She hung up.

Penelope shoved her phone in her pocket angrily, crossing her arms and glaring over at the decorations. What was she supposed to do now? Doing it by herself was easier said than done, and it just…felt so lonely.

“I guess your siblings aren’t coming over then?” She heard Fenris behind her, and she jumped. She whirled around, hand pressed against her chest. After a moment, she let her hand go to her side.

“Well uh…I mean,” She sighed, “No, they aren’t coming over.”

Fenris was in his work attire, black shirt and black pants, with his old black and white sneakers that stood out in his outfit. His usually shaggy hair was smoothed back and Penelope definitely didn’t like it.

“Do you want me to stay home and help? I’m sure I can miss one day without consequences,” Fenris said, his lips turning into a worried frown.

“No, no, that’s all right, love. I couldn’t ask you to skip work for something stupid like Christmas decorations. I don’t mind putting them up by myself,” She responded quickly, forcing a small smile onto her lips.

“Penelope,” Fenris rumbled, reaching forward, and taking a hold of both her hands, pulling her towards him, “I know you’re lying. I can stay home, I’ll call into work right now.”

“No, I don’t want you too! Just go to work, I’ll be fine here, I promise!”

“Look, you owe me, amatus. You decorated the Christmas tree without me. So, I want to decorate the house with you today. Can you give me that much?” Fenris leaned in and pressed his forehead against his girlfriend’s, smiling softly.

Her eyes swimming, she looked up into his eyes, before nodding, “Ok, I guess I can’t stop you if you want to decorate that bad.” Her voice had a hint of gratefulness that made Fenris warm.

Penelope pulled away slightly, only to be dragged back in for a lingering kiss, Fenris’ lips chapped but surprisingly soft. When they pulled away, Penelope’s cheeks were rosy and she was smiling genuinely. Just the way her boyfriend liked. He couldn’t stand when she was unhappy, he would do anything to see her smile like that.

“Ok, so, I have a lot of decorations for the house. I have lights for outside, I have snowglobes, figurines, all that stuff. Where do you want to start?”

Fenris put his hands on his hips, looking at the few tubs she had out. They were likely packed to the brim with Christmas decorations to put out, Hawke seemed like the type of girl who loved to put out all kinds of things. Fenris was the complete opposite, but he didn’t mind humoring her.

“Why don’t we start with the lights? Those will be the hardest because I have to get a ladder out,” Fenris said, rubbing his chin.

“Sounds good, I’ll get the lights out if you want to go get the ladder,” She said with an excited tone.

Fenris grabbed his coat off the couch and headed to the front door. Penelope, on the other hand, began opening the tubs to get out all the decorations. She did have a lot, but she wasn’t planning to put it all out this year. She did secretly want to be the most festive house on the block, since they just moved in this summer, but she didn’t think Fenris would like bringing that much attention to their house.

She hauled out the white icicle lights, which were in a large ball, and began to untangle them. She loved untangling things, it made her focus and she could usually get it done within a couple of minutes if she was uninterrupted. She stuck on her tongue and concentrated on unknotting these god forsaken lights. 

“Maker, I bet Carver put this stupid lights away, they are so messed up,” She muttered in an annoyed tone, seeing another knot in the light string.

“Having trouble, Pen?” Fenris came back inside, dusting the snow off his shoes before stepping onto the carpet. He had an amused expression as he watched her fumble with the string of lights, her light face turning down into a scowl.

“No, I got it, I just am going to—kick Carver’s ass…for putting the lights away- like this!!!” She snarled, yanking on the end of the lights furiously.

“You are very cute when you’re angry, I hope you know,” Fenris commented, coming closer and sitting down next to her to help. He gently took one end and began to untangle the other side.

“Yeah, you wouldn’t say that if you were Carver, because I’m going to punch him so hard he’ll forget what day it is,” She seethed, wrinkling her nose.

“Can I come along?” Fenris implored, chuckling.

“You’d have to hold me back, love,” She replied, her tense shoulders relaxing slightly as the lights unraveled.

Fenris removed one hand from the light pile to rub between her shoulder blades, “I don’t think I’d have the strength to hold you back, Penelope.”

“You’re damn right,” She laughed good-heartedly, leaning towards him, and placing her head on his shoulder with a ‘ _thunk_ ’.

“I love you,” She murmured after a moment, giving him a peck on the cheek before resuming her position on his shoulder.

“I love you too, amatus,” He whispered, letting his head settle gently on top of hers. With the lights finally untangled, Penelope scoot forward slightly and plugged them in.

Fenris watched her as she stared in awe at the white lights. It wasn’t long though, before the lights flickered, and then popped. With a fizzle, the lights went out. Hawke gaped at the lights, before turning her head to look at her boyfriend.

“I think the lights are burnt out!” She gasped in a horrified tone.

Fenris laughed, pressing his hand to his stomach. Penelope frowned and sadly stared at the lights in her hands.

“Don’t worry, Penelope! We can buy more today, we can head out to the store now if you would like,” Fenris said in between fits of giggles.

“Yes, I want to go right now, Mr. Giggles at Penelope’s misery,” She poked him in the chest with an amused glare.

They stood up, and Fenris lovingly pushed a couple of his lover’s fiery curls behind her ear, “I’m sorry about the lights, but now we can get new ones.”

“And you’re paying,” She said.

“We share finances, Pen,” He teased, pecking her pouty lips, and rubbing her cheek with his thumb.

“Yeah, well, it sounds better when I say that you’re paying because you laughed at me, love,” She nuzzled against his hand with a smile.

“Well, let’s get going, shall we? We do have a lot of decorations to put up.”


	18. Family Get Together

### Chapter Eighteen: _Family get together_

“All right, now, take another left at the light. Yeah…no, the next light! Down Darktown Avenue—Yes, I know it’s a weird street name,” Anders was talking to his sister, his voice laced with annoyance as he watched Spencer put yet another thing in the oven.

Spencer straightened up and closed the oven, before glancing over at his boyfriend with a grin. He was super excited he was meeting Anders’ sister. It was another piece of Anders’ life that he got to see finally. 

“Knock knock, hope you two aren’t having wild sex! Well, yes I do!” Isabela came plowing into the kitchen, her smile radiant. She had on just a long Christmas sweater, it barely went down to her mid-thigh. She also had on a Santa hat with ‘I’ve been Naughty’ on it.

“Sweet Maker, Isabela. I can’t believe you would wear that in winter,” Hawke gave her a quick hug and wrinkled his nose.

“It’s warm enough, Hawkey. Now, where’s Anders, I got to give him a big hug as well,” She grinned before moving into the living room where Anders was still giving directions.

“I can’t believe you’re the first to arrive. You’re usually the last,” Spencer called to her, before going to wash his hands. 

Hawke had prepared dinner, and had invited over all their friends and family for the occasion. Most of them wouldn’t be able to make in on Christmas Eve, so it was best they had a get together early. Gifts would hopefully be exchanged as well, though Hawke didn’t want to keep everyone all night. 

“Hello Isabela,” He heard Anders’ in the other room, and his heart warmed. Just a year ago, he never would’ve expected that he would have something like this. He couldn’t be any happier. He had the man he loved, and all his friends and family were coming over for Christmas. What more could he ask for?

There was another knock at the door, to which Havoc began howling, pretty much telling the person they could come in.

“Hawke?” He heard Fenris’ hesitant voice in the hallway, so he quickly popped in and grinned at his friend. Fenris was in the total opposite attire from Isabela, sporting a black sweatshirt and jeans.

“Merry early Christmas, Fen!” Hawke reached down and enveloped Fenris in a huge hug. Fenris squirmed in his grip, giving him a few quick pats on the back.

“All right, all right! Merry Christmas to you too, Spencer,” Fenris mumbled through the fabric of Spencer’s shirt.

Satisfied with that, he let Fenris go, who looked down at a slightly crumpled bag in his hands.

“I brought presents for everyone, we were exchanging gifts, yes?” Fenris questioned, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Yeah, we might be able to open a couple, but I don’t know how late this will run,” Hawke replied with a radiant smile, “I’m glad you could make it, Fenris.”

Fenris returned the smile, before wandering into the living room at Spencer’s urging. Isabela greeted him and Anders didn’t say anything because he was still on the phone.

“Oh, thank the Maker, yes, that’s my apartment building. I’ll buzz you in,” Anders said with a huge sigh.

“How did you two get in?” Hawke inquired from the kitchen, giving Fenris and Isabela pointed looks.

“I know your pass-code by heart, and I told Fenris,” Isabela said proudly.

“That’s extremely worrying, remind me to change the pass-code,” Hawke said, hearing the buzzer go off behind him.

“Fenris, can you come help me get these things out?” Spencer called.

“If I must,” He heard Fenris behind him and he jumped half-way to the ceiling.

“Sweet Andraste’s titties! You scared me,” Spencer gasped out, handing his friend some oven mits and opening the oven for him.

“I see you learned a couple new words from your boyfriend,” Fenris commented, grabbing the large ham and sweet potatoes.

Hawke snorted and removed the rest of the food from the oven, “I could come up with something like that myself.”

“It sounds like something Anders would say, don’t deny it,” Fenris poked him in the side, earning a small laugh from Spencer.

“Don’t, you know I’m ticklish, Fen,” He giggled, rubbing at his side.

“Unfortunately, I do. I remember the black eye you gave me,” Fenris grumbled, rubbing at his left eye with accusing gaze.

“It was an accident, I swear.”

“Yes, because feet kick on their own accord,” He retorted, leaning back against the counter with an easy-going smile towards Hawke.

“Merry Christmas!” He heard Bethany at the door, and he made his way to the hallway with Fenris behind him.

“Merry Christmas, Beth!” Hawke leapt forward and crushed his brother and sister in a hug. They both let out laughs and hugged him back with all their might.

“Food?” Carver asked, his stare on the kitchen. Hawke snorted and pushed his brother towards the living room, “Not yet, we gotta wait for everyone to arrive first.”

“Hello Hawke,” Sebastian was awkwardly standing behind Bethany. He had a bag full of presents in his arms. Spencer took it from him and smiled at Bethany, “Come in and greet everyone else!”

They went into the living room where everyone was gathered. Isabela was sprawled out in the love seat, Carver was already sitting with Havoc, who was laying in his lap, and Fenris had just sat down on the couch. Bethany jumped towards Isabela, plopping down in her lap with a big grin.

“Hello kitten, long time no see. When are you coming back to poker night? It’s not the same without you,” Isabela said, petting Bethany’s head.

Hawke stopped listening as Sebastian brushed past him and sat beside Fenris on the couch. Spencer let out a smile and leaned against the wall as he watched his family mingle together. It didn’t ponder there long as he heard the front door open again. He turned around to greet the person, but the words got caught in his throat. Anders was in front, looking adorable as always, but behind him was a woman he assumed was his sister and another man he didn’t know. He set down the presents he took from Sebastian and quickly came over, almost tripping over his own feet in the process.

Anders noticed him approaching and turned to his sister with a smile, moving out of the way slightly so she could get a look at Spencer.

“Merry Christmas!” Hawke said happily, not sure if she liked hugs. So, he put out his hand instead.

“Thank you, you must be Spencer,” She said, her voice very serious. It caught Hawke a little off guard and his smile faltered.

“I am, and you are?”

“I’m Orchid Cousland, Anders’ sister,” She gave Anders a look then she took his hand. She had a strong grip for a woman her size, almost reminded him of his boyfriend. He was about to let go of her hand, but she yanked him forward, giving him a hug. He returned the hug joyfully, looking at Anders. His lover grinned and gave him a thumbs-up.

“And this is my boyfriend, Alistair,” She introduced him to the man behind her, who sheepishly stepped up and shook Spencer’s hand. They seemed to be the same size, Alistair about the same height as Spencer, which was crazy.

“It’s nice to meet you both. If you’d like to head into the living room, I’m preparing the food so we can eat and exchange gifts,” Hawke informed them.

“I’ll show you to the living room,” Anders said, winking at his boyfriend before leading them away.

Spencer went back into the kitchen where he proceeded to squeal into his hand so no one would hear. His sister actually hugged him, she didn’t slap him or worse! Was that a seal of approval or did he have to endure some kind of test tonight as well?

“Varric’s here!” He heard the door open and close, along with Varric’s chuckling as he headed into the living room. He was met with cheers and hugs as Hawke got out the dinner plates and silverware. He couldn’t remember the last time everyone had gotten together like this. Last Christmas was a disaster.

“Do you need some help, brother?” Carver peeked into the kitchen.

“You actually want to help me? That’s a first, Carver,” Spencer responded with a chuckle.

“It’s only because it’s Christmas. I would do this on no other occasion,” He said, taking the dining ware from his brother and going to set the table. Spencer crossed his fingers they had enough room for everyone. They might have to have a few people eating in the living room.

After a little while longer, Merrill joined the party, and then Aveline was the last to arrive, carrying a huge bundle of presents.

Hawke was making sure everything was ready to eat when he heard someone shuffle in. He was expecting his brother or sister, but arms wrapped around his stomach and a body pressed against his back. He squawked, before looking back to see a chuckling Anders.

“Don’t do that when I’m checking the food, love! If I end up knocking my head against something again-“

“I won’t let that happen, I was just coming to check on you is all,” Anders murmured, placing his chin on Hawke’s shoulder.

“Well, the food is ready, I was just about to put everything out and they can just serve themselves. It would be easier than us all sitting at the table,” He replied, settling his body weight against the counter. He glanced out into the living room where Varric was telling a story to everyone.

“Are you glad everyone could make it?” Anders questioned.

“Yes, this is definitely a better Christmas than last year,” He said, instantly regretting the words.

He felt Anders stiffen up and remove his chin from Spencer’s shoulder. Hawke quickly turned around as Anders was moving away. He grabbed his boyfriend by the wrists and stopped him.

“I didn’t mean it like that, Anders!” He exclaimed quietly, not wanting to cause a ruckus.

“I know you didn’t, love, it’s just that…” He trailed off, not sure what to say.

“I don’t want you to ever think you coming back on Christmas hurt me in any way. I love you so much, and even if I didn’t think it then, I am so glad you came back,” He murmured, pressing his forehead to his lover’s.

“Is the food ready yet?!” He heard Carver yell from the living room, a few more yells joining his.

“You are all impatient losers and I hate you!” Hawke called back, getting a chorus of groans mixed with laughter.

He turned to Anders and gave him a swift peck on the lips, “Are you ready for dinner?”

Anders let a gentle smile and gave his boyfriend another kiss, “Yes, we better serve it before the crowd gets restless.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to write more on this, but at the same time I really didn't. So, I stopped it a bit early. I might add a bonus chapter showing them exchanging presents. Let me know if I should. XD


	19. Ugly Christmas Sweaters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if it has mistakes. I barely grazed over this as I'm super tired.

### Chapter Nineteen: _Ugly Christmas Sweaters_

“You’re joking,” Hawke said flatly, looking down at what Anders had in his hands.

Anders peered around and then smiled, “I’m 100% serious, love.”

“You can’t be. Out of all the things to love during the holidays, you pick the most cliché, ugly thing?!” Hawke looked down at the Christmas sweaters piled in his boyfriend’s grasp.

“They aren’t ugly!” Anders whined, shuffling closer to him and pouting.

Hawke loved the holidays, but he could just never get into ugly Christmas sweaters. It was something Bethany liked, and she usually made Carver dress up with her to match. But that’s where older brother always drew the line.

“They are ugly, don’t deny it, love,” Hawke murmured, ducking his head so the other people in the store didn’t hear him. This place was for people who absolutely loved Christmas. Spencer had to practically drag Anders in, and if anyone heard him complaining about the sweaters, he would probably get an earful about how great they are.

“Just try a couple on with me, please? I want us to have matching sweaters,” Anders replied, reaching down with one of his hands to grip Hawke’s.

Spencer looked at all the sweaters in his lover’s hand, then back at Anders’ hopeful face.

“Why do you get so excited over clothing? I thought decorating and sledding was ten times more fun than this,” Spencer grumbled, tugging on Anders’ sleeve to lead him to the dressing room.

“I’m just more of an adult than you, love,” Anders replied as they asked for one of the dressing rooms. The lady at the counter, who was chewing bubblegum and giving them a judgmental look, nodded, and led them to the back where the dressing rooms were. There was barely anyone back here, probably because people didn’t really need to try on their Christmas clothes. It was a pretty cheap and Hawke doubted anyone actually cared to try things on. 

“Take as long as you need,” The girl winked at them, showing them to the huge stall on the end before heading out back into the store.

“That girl gave me a weird look, was she trying to flirt?”

Anders snorted and pushed his boyfriend playfully, who in turn hit the wall with an ‘oomph’, “Not everyone is trying to flirt with you, Spencer.”

“That's up for debate. If you give anyone any type of look, they could take it as flirting,” Hawke responded as he eyed the stack of sweaters in Anders' hand.

Anders gave him a curious stare, setting the clothes down, he approached his boyfriend.

“Are you saying you can seduce someone just by staring at them? Bullshit.”

“Not seduce! It's more like flirting. And I didn't say I could do it, love,” He corrected himself, swallowing hard and laughing nervously.

“I think you can, I mean, how did you get me?” He teased, reaching his hand over and tracing a finger over Hawke's torso.

“With my witty humor and unbelievably good looks?”

“Whatever helps you sleep,” Anders planted a big kiss on Hawke's lips, before going back over to the sweaters, “I'll make a bet with you. If you can get the counter girl to give you her number with just a look, we can do whatever you want tonight.”

“Anything I want?”

“Anything you want,” Anders repeated, glancing back at his boyfriend, before slowly sliding out of his shirt to try on the Christmas sweater. Spencer swallowed hard, staring at the muscles rippling along Anders' back, the way his shoulder blades moved as he stretched his arms and popped his back. Maker, he was a lucky man to have such a beautiful lover.

“Finding something interesting on my back? S'not like you haven't seen it before,” Anders said suddenly, bringing Hawke back to the present. With a smile, he strode over, his hands on Anders' hips immediately.

The man jumped at Hawke's sudden touch, before leaning back to press his body into Spencer's. Hawke licked his lips before bringing his head forward to rest next to Anders'. He took one of his earlobes in his mouth and nibbled on it, sliding his hands up Anders' stomach before back down to his hips. His boyfriend let out a soft moan and reached forward to press his hand to the wall.

“Love, this is...a dressing room, not our bedroom. Though I don't mind getting fucked in a public place, I'm pretty sure it can wait,” Anders murmured as Spencer kissed down his neck.

Hawke let out a whine, before turning his lover around. He pressed his lips to the other's feverishly, locking his arms around Anders' hips. Anders responded almost right away, his hands moving up to Hawke's head and tangling his fingers in his dark brown hair.

“Love, Spencer,” Anders finally pushed him back, his breath ragged as he gave him a wild look, “You need to wait till we get home. We can just try on these shirts and leave. I just really want to try on the sweaters.”

Hawke clenched his jaw and backed away, nodding, “I can't believe you're more excited about shirts than the prospect of having sex. I'm appalled, in all honesty.”

“Don't be, it's just my guilty pleasure.”

“Sex or ugly Christmas sweaters?”

“Harhar, here, try this one on,” Anders tossed him a black sweater from the bottom of the pile, slipping into a red one himself.

Spencer removed his shirt and put on what Anders wanted, going over to the mirror. He let out a small sigh, grimacing at the picture on the sweater. It had a dragon head in the middle with two wings on the side, along with intricate designs around the whole thing.

“Do you like it?” Anders came up to stand beside him, showing off what Christmas sweater he had on. It had a kitten head on it, with the words 'Meowy Christmas' in bright green writing.

“It's…different. But it has a dragon on it,” He pointed out with a weary smile.

“So do you want that one? I have a few more-”

“No, no! I love this one, it's great. I want this one,” Hawke said quickly, shedding the sweater for his normal shirt.

“I have a few more to try on, if you want to stay and watch.”

A few included around ten more, which made Spencer extremely tired. How did one store have so many ugly ass Christmas sweaters? It was gross, and he reminded himself to never come back to this stupid store.

“I guess I'll get the kitten one,” Anders muttered as they headed to the front desk where the same girl was sitting. She was still chewing on bubblegum, but now she had out a magazine.

Anders elbowed him as they got up to the counter, jerking his head to the girl with a smirk. Hawke let out a sigh and as they approached, he tried his best to put on some kind of smolder that you see in those movies. The girl saw them and she closed her magazine, her eyes grazing right over Anders' and onto Hawke. 

“Are you ready to check-out?” She implored.

“Yes, thank you,” Anders said, setting down the sweaters they were getting.

Hawke placed his elbow on the counter and stared at the girl while she rang up their clothes. Her cheeks began to grow redder as time went on, only making eye contact with Spencer once before looking away. 

“It will be 34.59,” She squeaked, eyes on the counter.

Anders paid and when the receipt printed out, she gave Hawke a weird look as she handed it to Anders. Anders began chuckling as they made their way out of the store.

They left the store, thanking the girl immensely. Hawke looked back at the girl one more time, but she was already back to her magazine. Anders began to cackle as soon as they left the store.

“Maybe I just didn't get the look right,” Hawke mumbled dejectedly, glancing back at the store.

“Or she was creeped out by your staring. I feel bad we put her through that now that I think about it. Maybe we should go and apologize,” Anders said, intertwining his fingers with Spencer's.

“I think she will be okay, she doesn't need a man to complete her,” He replied, snapping his fingers.

“You're horrible, let's go. I can't take you anywhere,” Anders hit his shoulder.

“On one condition. I'm not wearing that sweater in public. Ever.”

“No promises, love.”


	20. Christmas Carols

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, guess what? It's past the 24th, and I'm not done, am I? Terribly sorry, but who could get tired of reading about these weirdos?
> 
> Updated the tags. :P

### Chapter Twenty: _Christmas Carols_

“I don’t sing,” Anders stated bluntly, looking his boyfriend over. He was wearing the sweater Anders had bought him yesterday, but that was not going to make him change his mind this time.

“I’m not suggesting you sing, love. I hear you in the shower,” Hawke said, picking at the sweater distractedly.

“Are you saying I’m a bad singer? That hurts,” Anders said with mock offense.

“I didn’t say you were a bad singer, I am just saying that sometimes I can’t tell the difference between Havoc howling and you singing,” He let out a grin, chuckling at his own joke.

Anders slapped Spencer’s arm full force, headbutting him and pressing his forehead to his lover’s shoulder. He let out a sigh and stared at the ground.

“I just don’t want to go Christmas caroling, love. It brings back horrible memories,” He muttered.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Spencer whispered, reaching over and petting Anders’ head.

“Maybe another time, I just,” He sighed and looked up at his boyfriend with puppy dog eyes, “I don’t want to ruin your fun.”

“You are not ruining my fun, love. Don’t you ever say that. We can stay home, and maybe…” He glanced around, before his eyes settled on something in the corner of the room, “And maybe sing karaoke?”

“Karaoke? Where did you come up with that?”

Hawke scurried over to the microphones and device in the back corner of the dining room. He picked it up and turned to Anders with a sly grin, “You don’t have to go out and sing to people, we can sing Christmas carols right in the comfort of our own home.”

Anders looked at the box skeptically, before glancing up at Spencer’s hopeful face. He let out a sigh and ran his fingers through his hair, “I guess if you really want too, I don’t mind doing a few rounds of karaoke.”

Hawke pumped his fist and practically sprinted over to their TV, getting down on his knees. He started to hook up the karaoke machine. When did they even get this? Hawke bet that Bethany gave it to them after she decided her singing career would never take off. Or maybe Isabela gave it to them after that one bar said she wasn’t allowed in anymore if she brought this machine with her? As he fumbled with the cables, he felt Anders’ hands touch his shoulders, massaging them gently with firm fingers.

“You really don’t mind not going out Christmas caroling, love?” Anders questioned softly.

“I’m fine, really Anders. I think I got this hooked up. Now we just have to download some Christmas songs and then we can get this show on the road,” He stood up and turned to the man behind him.

He gave him a quick peck on the lips before sitting down on the couch. Anders joined him shortly after, cuddling into his side with both arms wrapped around Hawke’s waist.

“What song do you want to sing, love?” Hawke questioned Anders.

In response, Anders buried his head into the side of Spencer’s chest and shook his head, ‘Santa Baby’.”

“The one by the Pussycat dolls?”

“Yeah.”

Hawke downloaded the song onto the TV, then picked out his favorite Christmas song, ‘ _Wonderful Christmas time_ ’, by: Paul McCartney. He didn’t want to force Anders to do something he didn’t want too, so he was going to make this as short as possible. 

“All right, I got it set up, you ready to get beat at karaoke?” Hawke teased.

“Only in your dreams, I’m amazing at karaoke,” Anders replied, giving him a soft punch in the stomach before standing. 

“Uh-huh, and where did you learn this, pray tell?” Spencer questioned, standing and picking up a mic. Once they were settled, Hawke picked out his song and grinned over at Anders.

“Prepared to be amazed, I’ve been told I got a wonderful singing voice.”

“Is there anything you aren’t good at, love?” Anders teased.

“Hmmmm, does working count?”

“Only if you factor in that you’re lazy,” Anders offered, tapping the mic a couple of times to make sure it was still properly working. 

“Well then,” He sniffed and began the song. It was one of the most hilarious things Spencer had done in a really long time. It was true he had a pretty nice singing voice, but as soon as the song began, he immediately started to caterwaul the lyrics. Anders was not expecting it, and he burst out laughing as soon as the song started. Once he stopped laughing, he tried to mess up Hawke, who was way ahead of him even with his horrible singing. Anders proceeded to jump in front of Spencer, step on his microphone cord, and playfully shove him. 

“You’re a real cheater, I hope you know that,” Hawke panted when they were done. Anders had won by only a couple points.

“I try,” Anders gave him a big grin and planted a sweet kiss on his boyfriend’s lips. Spencer wiped off his forehead, which had a thin film of sweat across it.

“Can you turn on the fan, love? I’m dying,” Hawke croaked, slipping the God-awful Christmas sweater over his head and tossing it over to the love seat where Havoc was sleeping. She jumped and glared at him, before laying her head back down.

“Of course, my poor baby can’t handle one song with the man who apparently sounds like a dying cat,” Anders said with mock sympathy, jutting out his bottom lip as he flipped the switch for the fan.

“This time I’m serious, I will beat you whether you cheat or not,” Spencer said, pointing his finger at Anders, who had moved back to Spencer’s side.

“No, you’re not. Because I’m going to sing this song by myself,” He replied with a grin.

“What? You don’t want a rematch?”

“There’s no need, I won the last round. But now I’m going to try something and I want you to watch,” Anders said, pushing his amber locks away from his face.

“All right, I guess I’ll go sit down?” He raised his eyebrows, directing himself towards the couch.

“Yes, sit right in the middle please,” Anders instructed with a mischievous smile.

“Should I be scared?”

“Of course not, love. This will be fun,” He turned to the TV and quickly pressed play on his song, “For me.”

Spencer swallowed hard and watched as the song began. Anders unhooked the mic cord, and began the song. Hawke wasn’t sure what was going on, but Anders wasn’t half-bad, it was actually kind of hot.

Anders turned around, stretching his arms to the ceiling and letting his shirt ride up over his abdomen. He kept his gaze on Hawke as he brought his arms back down slowly, his fingers hooking under his own shirt. With a sly grin, he lazily pulled it over his head and tossed it to the floor.

Spencer kept his eyes glued to the man in front of him. Anders rolled his hips a couple of times, his unseen muscles rippling across his body. He took a few steps forward and gyrated his hips with another grin, sticking out his tongue. Hawke could feel the boner now forming in his jeans, and he shifted on the couch.

“I never knew I could be seduced listening to Christmas music,” Spencer rasped, earning a chuckle from his boyfriend.

Anders didn’t reply as he finally made it to Hawke, sliding into his lap. He ground his pelvis into Spencer’s, getting a small whimper in return. Anders placed a hand on Hawke’s shoulder and pulled him in for a passionate kiss, opening his mouth and exploring the man’s mouth under him. He bit his lover’s lip before pulling back. He went for Spencer’s neck, trailing his tongue down his boyfriend’s throat and down his torso. The song ended soon after, and they were left with the silence mingled with both panting.

“How’d you like it?” Anders broke the silence first, a sheepish grin on his face.

“Uh well,” Hawke paused, his eyes smoldering, “You better be glad I didn’t decide to fuck you right where you stood. I can barely control myself at the moment.”

“I think I can help with that, love,” Anders purred.


	21. Mistletoe

### Chapter Twenty-One: _Mistletoe_

“I’m glad you came out to lunch with me, Hawkey, I haven’t gotten to spend time with you for a while,” Isabela said as they sat down in the corner of the coffee shop.

“You just saw me at the Christmas party a few days ago,” Spencer pointed out bluntly, staring down at the lunch he had to buy for both of them with disdain.

“That’s such a long time, kitten. I was gone for almost two weeks before that. And I feel like you’ve been avoiding me. Any reason for that?”

Hawke took a huge bite of his chicken salad sandwich and took a sip of his coke, “Avoiding you, dear Isabela? Perish the thought, you’re my best friend.”

“Pfft, yeah right, I think my spot was taken by the white-haired wonder. Are you avoiding me because of your boyfriend?”

Hawke choked on his drink, coughing violently as he stared at her incredulously, “Why would I avoid you because of Anders?” He rasped.

“You asked me for advice on your relationship once, and then never asked again. It kind of made me feel bad,” She pouted, puffing out her cheeks and looking down at her food.

“Is this really what you’re talking about? Isabela, I am not avoiding you. Maker’s breath, I can hardly get rid of you.”

She brightened up and leaned forward over the table, “Then spill the juicy details, kitten. How is it going with the golden beauty? Any kinky stories? I heard you fucked him on the dining room table.”

Hawke nervously glanced over at a couple of old ladies who were glaring at them, clearing his throat and scowling at Isabela.

“Not so loud, not everyone likes to hear about my sex life, Izzy,” He muttered, taking another bite of his sandwich.

“Well I certainly do, now out with it before I start tickling,” She waved her fingers towards his face with a sly grin.

“My lips are sealed, young lady. My sex life is between Anders and I,” He paused, “But if you must know, our relationship is pretty good.”

“Have you moved past the ‘ _let’s make love on every piece of furniture_ ’ stage yet?”

Spencer let out a snort, “I don’t think that stage will ever pass. Unless I’m in my 80’s.”

“You’re no fun, Hawkey. If I was talking with your sister, I could get her to spill every detail about Sebastian I desired. Did you know he likes blindfolds?”

“Ew, ok, that’s something I didn’t need to know about the dear chantry boy,” Hawke wrinkled his nose and made gagging noises.

“And I know that you like it rough, kitten. And you like biting,” She told him with a wink.

“How did you-- what the fuck, Isabela?”

“Little birdy told me,” She waggled her finger and finished her food, “But anyways, I didn’t come here to discuss kinks. I invited you because I wanted to give you something.”

“Give me something? We already exchanged gifts,” He ducked his head and blushed, “And Anders really likes the gift you got us.”

“It was hard to figure him out, but I was honestly surprised he was into leather,” Isabela said thoughtfully, tapping her chin. Without another word, she dug through her purse till she found what she was looking for. She pulled out a small box wrapped in silver paper. She presented it to him with a flourish.

“Can I open this in public?” He questioned suspiciously, scratching at the wrapping paper.

“Yes, Hawke, you can. Now open it so I can head back to work,” She responded with a slightly annoyed tone.

He ripped off the wrapping paper and opened the box to reveal some kind of herb wrapped together with twine. He pulled it out and looked at it confusedly.

“What it is?” He questioned, glancing up at Isabela who was now on her toes. She leaned over the table and planted a big smacker on his lips, leaving him stunned.

“It’s mistletoe, you big lug. I thought you could use it in some way at home,” She cooed, pulling back with a huge grin.

“You could’ve just told me,” He muttered as she gathered up her things.

“And how fun would that have been? Anyways, I gotta go. Hopefully we can do this again sometime! Love ya, kitten!” She blew him a kiss, before disappearing out the door.

Hawke put the mistletoe back into the box and shoved it in his pocket, getting out of his seat and heading back the apartment. Isabela was lucky that he had the early shift this morning, or else her plans would have been null and void.

When he got home, Anders was asleep, probably because he had the midnight shift last night and didn’t get home till around eight. Hawke hated that he had to work odd hours, but he knew how much his boyfriend loved the job he worked. If only it was a bit easier on him, he already had so much on his shoulders.

Spencer put his keys and wallet on the counter, letting out a sigh, he also put the present box on the counter, deciding he would mess with it later when Anders was actually awake. Right now, all he wanted to do was take a shower and maybe take a nap with his warm boyfriend as his heater.

He slipped out of his clothes and headed into the bathroom, turning on the shower. His fingers and toes were cold from the frigid air of Kirkwall, and a hot shower was probably the only way to thaw them out. Once the whole bathroom was steaming, he jumped in. The water was scalding, but it felt nice against his skin.

He washed up slowly, savoring the heat while he could. The water eventually started to turn cold, and that’s when he got out. When he checked his phone, he realized he almost spent 45 minutes in the shower. It was around two in the afternoon. He grabbed a towel and headed into the bedroom to dry off and get dressed in some comfy clothes.

He expected Anders to be in the same position, but he was gone, the blanket rumpled and pillows messed up where he once was. Hawke casually walked over to his dresser and picked out a t-shirt, some pajama pants, and a pair of boxers to wear. He dried off and got dressed, and then headed back into the bathroom to brush his hair.

“Did you have a good day at work, love?” He heard behind him as he was smoothing down his unruly hair.

“It was fine, just another long morning shift. I assume your shift was hell as always,” Hawke responded, using his brush to tame the wavy dark brown hair on his head.

“It was just a long shift.”

“At least you have a few days off now for Christmas,” Spencer offered distractedly, focusing on one stubborn piece of hair on his head.

“You’re right,” Anders paused, and Hawke looked at him through the mirror curiously, “By the way, I found something on the counter. I hope you don’t mind that I opened it.”

“You mean the little box? It was from Isabela,” Hawke was now brushing his beard hair, wondering if he needed to trim it soon or not. It at least kept his face warm.

“Spencer,” Anders said softly.

Blinking, Hawke turned around to see Anders in the doorway. He was dressed in nothing but his pajama pants, and above him was the mistletoe, taped against the frame of the door. Spencer let out a small smile, chuckling as he neared his lover.

“If you wanted a kiss, all you had to do was ask, love,” He murmured, reaching out and taking Anders by the hips. He dragged the man towards him, pulling their bodies flush together, he placed a heated kiss onto Anders’ lips. It was definitely different from the one Isabela planted on him earlier. This was a passionate, longing kiss between lovers who couldn’t get enough of one another. It usually led to other things like having sex on a tabletop.

Hawke pulled back after a moment, out of breath. He eyed Anders, who was grinning up at his lover, “I thought I would let the Christmas tradition speak for me,” He responded.

“I like action more than words,” Spencer whispered, going in for another kiss.

“Me too.”


	22. Christmas Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter is rated E, some dick sucking in bound!

### Chapter Twenty-Two: _Christmas Dinner_

“So, not a single person is coming over tonight?” Anders prompted for the fifth time today.

“No, no one is coming over. I already told you that we technically had our Christmas dinner with them. Now it’s just us. Why, do you want someone to come over?”

“No, I just…I feel odd not having a big Christmas dinner. My family always did it, and I when I left, I usually went to someone’s house for dinner,” He explained, looking up at him from where his head laid in Spencer’s lap.

“Well, if you really want, I can invite everyone over and then have you be disappointed when they say they have to feed their dog or wash their hair,” Hawke teased, running his fingers through Anders’ silky locks.

“I think I will be just fine without that, thank you,” Anders turned over and buried his head into Hawke’s shirt, his hand running up and down Spencer’s side.

“At least I prepared a little with the ham,” Hawke said after a moment, letting out a smile.

“Leftover ham is not as good as fresh ham, love. But I’m glad you thought ahead,” Anders’ voice was muffled in Hawke’s shirt.

“And you wanted to eat some kind of frozen meal, hah! This is Christmas Eve, love! I’ve never eaten something so pathetic on such a wonderful holiday,” Spencer gave a light smack to Anders’ back.

Anders scoffed and momentarily looked up at his lover, “Excuse me for weighing my options. Your cooking isn’t always top notch.”

“Hey! You’re hurting my feelings,” He responded, frowning with mock hurt.

“Aren’t you supposed to be watching some kind of TV show? I thought The Santa Claus was on,” Anders mumbled, resuming his position cuddled into Hawke’s shirt.

“You’re the one who wouldn’t stop talking about people coming over,” He accused, before tilting his head back up to focus on the TV.

He maybe got to watch five more minutes of the movie, before he felt Anders shift in his lap. He glanced down in time to catch Anders’ glittering eyes in the darkness of the room.

“What’s that look for?” Hawke questioned, looking back up to the TV.

Anders’ hand moved from Spencer’s side to stroke his crotch. Hawke quickly moved his eyes back down to his boyfriend, who had a playful grin on his features.

“I’m trying to watch a Christmas movie and you want to-“ He was cut off by Anders, who let out a ‘tsking’ noise and began to rub harder into Hawke’s crotch.

“Then keep paying attention to your movie. I’ll just be having a little fun down here,” Anders slipped a finger into the elastic of Spencer’s sweatpants and pulled it back, before letting it slap back against Hawke’s stomach.

“Yeah, right, because focusing on Santa Claus is a lot more easier when your lover is sucking your dick,” Hawke retorted.

“It won’t take long, love. Just a quickie before dinner. You always pleasure me, now let me return the favor,” Anders purred, looking up at him with smoldering eyes.

“You know I can’t say no to that,” He muttered as Anders reached behind Hawke to grab his ass. He dug his fingers into Spencer’s pants and yanked them down from behind, letting them drop to his ankles. Spencer was already slightly hard from the early simulation, and he was growing harder by the second. Anders moved from his spot next to Hawke onto his knees on the floor. Hawke spread out his legs to make room for Anders to crouch in between them. His golden hair fell around his face and made him look like some angelic being. 

Anders wrapped one of his hands around Hawke’s cock and pumped a couple of times experimentally. Spencer bit down on his tongue and let out a small purr at the contact. Once he was erect, it didn’t take Anders long to lean down, flicking his tongue against the tip before glancing up at Spencer with a smirk. Hawke squirmed a little and whimpered, pressing one of his hands into his thigh.

Anders finally took the tip in his mouth. Spencer let out all his breath, before his breath hitched once again as his boyfriend took in more of his length. It wasn’t long before he was halfway into Anders’ mouth, and his hands itched to tangle his fingers in his lover’s hair and urge him to take in more. His cheeks began to turn red as Anders finally made it all the way to the hilt. With a deep breath, he began to bob his head, pulling almost all the way off his cock before going all the way back down. Anders’ hand searched and found Spencer’s, moving it to his head in silent permission. With that, Spencer gripped Anders’ soft hair and thrusted his hips in time with Anders. Hawke’s breath became ragged, moaning.

“Oh fuck, _Anders_ , faster,” He urged, letting out a particularly hard thrust that almost choked his boyfriend. He slowed for a moment, his eyes taking on a hint of worry. But after a moment of adjustment, Anders’ hand grabbed onto his ass and squeezed, beginning to bob his head once again.

He wasn’t sure how long he was going to last at this point, and he could feel himself moving closer to the edge. He was sweating now, and as he watched Anders, he noticed his boyfriend had his eyes on Hawke’s face. Was he watching him the entire time? He didn’t have time to dwell on it further as he arched his back.

“I’m gonna, ugh- _fuck_!” He came down Anders’ throat, throwing his head back with a long, aching moan. After a couple moments, he untangled his fingers from Anders’ hair and let him remove his mouth from Spencer’s cock. Come and spit covered Anders’ mouth and chin, and he wiped it on Spencer’s pants with a cheeky grin. Anders then proceeded to pulled a hairband off his wrist and started to put his hair up, his amber eyes wandering up and down his boyfriend.

“You should probably check the ham, love,” Anders finally said, plopping back down on the couch.

“Ugh, you’re right. And I need to put on new pants, thanks to you,” He responded with fake irritation. He grinned at his boyfriend and gave him a quick peck on the lips, standing and taking his pants off from around his ankles.

“It’s revenge for nearly choking me with your dick,” He teased, curling his legs in front of him and sticking out his tongue.

With a chuckle, Spencer headed into the bedroom and exchanged pants, cleaning himself off as well. Then he went straight to the kitchen and opened the oven to check the ham. It looked about done, he was going to give it a few more minutes. It was as soon as he closed the oven that there was a low growl from the oven and then a boom. Spencer yelped and scrambled away, whipping around to stare at the oven. 

Which was now on fire.

“Anders! I lit the oven on fire! _HOLY FUCK_!” He yelled, looking around frantically for something to put out the flames now consuming the oven.

“What?! How in Andraste’s name-!” Anders was in the kitchen almost immediately, staring at the fire with wide eyes.

Hawke ran over and began to search for the fire extinguisher under the counter. Anders had a better idea though, sprinting for the sink, he turned the water on full blast and used the sprayer. Hawke was sprayed in the process as he found the extinguisher and put out the rest of the flames with a screech.

Now soaking wet, Hawke dropped the fire extinguisher and turned to Anders, his hair dripping into his eyes.

“I think we should order take-out.”

“Good idea.”


	23. The Night before Christmas

### Chapter Twenty-Three: _The Night before Christmas_

“Look what I found!” Penelope called to Fenris, who was undressing out of his semi-formal clothes from the earlier family Christmas dinner they attended.

Fenris peered up and squinted his eyes as he looked at what his girlfriend had in her hands. He saw something to do with Christmas, so he immediately went back to trying to unbutton his pants.

“You didn’t even look! It’s one of my childhood books! The Night before Christmas. My dad got it for me when I was really young,” She explained, staring at the worn picture book fondly.

“And why did you bring it out so suddenly?” He questioned, sliding out of his pants and picking out some sweatpants to put on. 

“Well, I know it’s kind of late, and you’re tired from mingling with my crazy family, but I thought we could read it together?” She said, giving him hopeful eyes.

Fenris paused in what he was doing to glance at Hawke with raised eyebrows, “You want me to read something? I thought we already discussed that even after all your reading lessons, I’m still a horrible reader.”

“It will be good practice,” She offered, grinning from ear-to-ear.

Fenris let out a sigh and shook his head with a lopsided grin, “All right, amatus. If that’s how you want to spend the night, I don’t mind doing it. With you.”

Penelope’s heart fluttered and her cheeks turned bright red. Fenris didn’t smile like that very often, and it made her fall in love with him even more every time she saw such a wonderful smile directed towards herself. Fenris slipped on his pants and t-shirt, then beckoned his lover to move out into their living room.

The lights were mostly off, only the hallway light was on, splashing a warm light across the living room. They did have a fire place, but Fenris nor Penelope had chopped any wood to put in it, so it had rarely been used. Fenris said he would not pay for any wood and would only use the stuff he chopped himself. It was silly in Hawke’s opinion, but she did like going out on wood-chopping adventures with him sometimes. When it wasn’t -20 degrees out.

Fenris was about to turn on the living room light, but Penelope placed her hand on his arm, stopping him, “Can we leave them out, love? I think there’s enough light from the hallway light, yes?”

He snorted and removed his hand from the light switch, pecking her on her forehead, “You’re the reason I’m going to go blind someday.”

“From my blinding good-looks, no doubt,” She responded jokingly, striking a pose as she followed him to the couch.

Fenris sat down first, criss-crossing his legs, and leaning back into the dark leather of the couch. With that, Penelope joined him, laying across the rest of the couch and pressing the back of her head into Fenris’ thigh, her gaze on his face. She let out a radiant smile as he calmly stared down at her with a hint of amusement.

“Do you want to hand me the book, or did you plan to stare at my face all day?”

“Yes, right!” She dug the book out from underneath her and handed it to her boyfriend. He looked at the cover for a few moments, his eyebrows slowly raising once again.

“This is really old,” He stated after some time, flipping it over to look at the back.

“Hey! It’s about as old as me! Are you calling me old?”

“Hardly,” He sniffed, opening it up to the cover page, “The Night before…Christmas. Very original title.”

“Love, please just read the story before I strangle you.”

He turned a couple of pages and cleared his throat,  
“Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house  
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.  
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,  
In hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there.” He started the story, his voice all deep and rumbly, the way Hawke loved.

He had a hard time reading a few of the words, but got through most of it without stuttering. He was halfway through the story when Penelope started to become a little drowsy, the comforting drone of Fenris’ voice in the background lulling her into a light dose. She woke up at the sound of the last words of the story, blinking her eyes a couple of times. Hawke closed her eyes and rubbed them, letting out a yawn. It was around midnight probably, and she was ready for bed.

Fenris closed the book where it laid on the arm of the couch, glancing down at his girlfriend, “You fell asleep while I was reading, amatus.”

“I didn’t mean too, your voice is just so sexy it made me extremely sleepy, love,” She said in a childish voice, grinning up at him, “But now I think we should head to bed. Wouldn’t want ol’ Santa to skip our house because we were up past midnight.”

Fenris rolled his eyes, but stopped her as she sat up. Penelope looked back at him with a questioning stare, wondering why he grabbed her. He looked a bit nervous, and he scared her a little. Did she have something on her face? Did a spider drop down from the ceiling and land in her hair while she was dosing off? Was it on her forehead now?

“I want you to open something tonight,” He said carefully, standing up to head over to the Christmas tree that was decorated beautifully. No thanks to Hawke’s handiwork.

Presents were under the tree, only a few though since they took the bulk over to her mother’s house to hand out to their friends and family. Now what laid there was for Puppers, her, and Fenris.

“I don’t usually like opening gifts before Christmas day, love. Is it that important?” She implored, going over to stand by him.

“Yes, it is, and I want you to open it tonight,” Fenris went to the back of the tree and plucked something off the actual tree itself. She wondered if he was hiding it from her so she wouldn’t peek. Not like she did, but anyways.

It was a small package, it fit in the palm of her hand. She gulped, suddenly feeling nervous herself, but not having any idea why. He let out a shaky smile and handed it to her to open. It was wrapped it delicate golden wrapping paper with a silver ribbon on top.

She untied the ribbon and let it drop to the floor, before tearing into it. Underneath was a velvet box…in the shape of something you keep jewelry in. Her breath hitched in her throat and she went to look up at Fenris, but he wasn’t where she expected him to be. Hawke looked down past the present to see Fenris on one knee. He looked a bit calmer now, almost confident. But what could she expect out of him, she knew him well enough to know he rarely got super nervous over big things.

“May I?” He asked, gesturing towards the box.

At a complete loss for words and her heart beating up a massive storm, she nodded furiously and put the box in his hand. She was on the verge of tears when he gave her one of his famous tender smiles and clicked open the box.

Inside was a simple engagement ring, with black diamonds encrusting a larger black diamond in the middle. She let out a tiny gasp as tears began to willingly fall from her eyes. She whimpered.

“Will you, Penelope Marian Hawke, marry me?”

Everything seemed to come to a stand-still after those words were uttered. All the stupid come-backs and horrible jokes she wanted to crack were lost on her tongue. Hawke felt like nothing was around her beside Fenris and herself. She could feel the tears flowing down her face and her bottom lip trembling hardcore. Finding her voice, her face broke into the biggest smile she could muster.

“Yes, of course, love. I will marry you!” She whispered, her voice trembling.

Fenris beamed at her, relief clear on his face. He removed the ring from its holder and took her hand gently, slipping it onto her ring finger. Fenris then proceeded to kiss her hand and then move up to kiss her fully on the lips.

She wrapped his arms around him and welcomed the deep loving kiss, moving back to embrace him, and bury her head in his shoulder.

“I love you, Penelope,” He murmured, pressing another kiss to her temple.

“I love you too, Fenris. Maker’s breath, I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you wanted to know what the ring looks like, here it is! [Tada!](http://www.kay.com/en/kaystore/r6-rings-101488--1/black-diamond-ring-1-1-4-carats-tw-10k-white-gold/101488/101488.101495)


	24. Part One of Writer's Choice!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is part one of Writer's choice! I have a part two because my brother gave me a prompt and I had one of my own! Hope you've enjoyed so far!

### Chapter Twenty-Four: _Part One of Writer’s choice_

“Are you awake, love?” Hawke heard a whisper against his back, and he groaned audibly.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Spencer felt an arm slither over his stomach and a warm body press against his back.

“Is that a Christmas present or are you just happy to see me?” Hawke mumbled sleepily, rolling over to face Anders.

His boyfriend was wide-awake, and looked super excited like a kid on their first Christmas. Spencer opened his eyes wider and blinked a couple of times.

“Why do you look like that?” He questioned, scratching his head and plopping his head back onto his pillow with a drowsy sigh.

“Because I want to open presents, you big bear,” Anders shoved him slightly, earning a grunt from Hawke. After a few moments, Hawke cracked open one of his eyes to look up at Anders. He was glaring down at Spencer, his arms on either side of him to hold himself up.

Hawke got on his elbows and in one quick movement, gave his lover a kiss, “All right, fine, let’s go open presents before you soil yourself from excitement.”

“I’m not Havoc, love,” Anders replied flatly, earning a chuckle from Hawke. They both got out of bed, and Hawke checked his phone to see what time it was.

“You’re waking me up at eight in the morning…for presents?” Spencer grumbled as they went out into the living room. He was never particularly excited for presents, even when he was little. He saw no need to get up at the butt crack of dawn just to open presents that would still be there around noon when he actually wanted to get up. That, and he didn’t like accepting gifts in the first place.

Anders’ eyes lit up as he spotted the tree. He practically ran over to the tree and plucked a candy cane off of it, which Hawke put on last night after Anders had went to bed.

“Yummy, it’s the Jolly Ranchers kind!” He beamed over at Spencer, who blushed as he sat down on the couch. Havoc was snoring next to him, and she was awoken by him plopping down. Hawke gave her a few pets to lull her back to sleep, before turning his attention back to Anders.

He had already opened the candy cane and was now nibbling on it as he surveyed the presents. There weren’t a lot of presents under the tree, neither of them knowing what to get one another without upsetting the other. Having a first Christmas was hard, especially for someone who had good old Hawke as a boyfriend.

“Can I open any one I want, love?” Anders questioned, rubbing his chin as he sorted out presents. Spencer was surprised he had more than one gift, but kept his mouth shut. It was Christmas, there was no need for him to decline whatever his boyfriend got him. No matter how ridiculous.

“Of course, you can open them all, they are for you,” He said with a grin.

“Well no shit, Sherlock. I was just making sure there wasn’t one you were saving for last,” He said, picking out one of the crudely wrapped gifts.

“I am saving one for last, but that’s not out here,” He stated nonchalantly. Anders swiveled his head to look back at Spencer, but didn’t catch his gaze.

Anders’ presents included a new stethoscope, a new pair of dragon-covered scrubs (“I don’t need dragon scrubs, I work with elderly patients”), Dragon Time for the PS4, and a new deck of cards for Poker night. 

“Don’t forget that one,” Hawke pointed to a small package that was left on the floor. Anders looked at it curiously, before picking it up carefully.

“You aren’t proposing, I hope. That’s incredibly cheesy, love,” He said, tearing off the silver wrapping paper. Hawke snorted and kicked him playfully in the back, “Just open it.”

It was a black velvet bag, tied up with string. Anders pulled loose the string and let it drop to the floor. He peered in, before looking up at Spencer with slightly confused eyes.

“What is it?”

“Can you actually pull it out of the bag? There’s three things in there,” Hawke urged, leaning forward to see the bag over Anders’ shoulder.

Anders nodded and fished his fingers into the small bag. He pulled out a simple gold chain necklace, and his eyes lit up.

“To replace the one I broke!” He exclaimed happily, feeling it in his palm. Hawke shifted and reached down, turning the necklace over to reveal the engraving on the back.

“’Love’? Oh, love, it’s wonderful, thank you so much!” Anders turned his torso and hugged Spencer’s legs, placing his chin on his knees. Hawke planted a big slobbery kiss on his lover’s forehead with a tender smile.

“There’s more, don’t keep us in suspense,” Hawke said.

Anders turned back and dug into the bag once again, pulling out a pair of small gold hoop earrings. He raised his eyebrows and glanced back at Hawke.

“What? Don’t look at me like that. You told me you used to wear an earring, and I thought, well, I thought maybe you would get your ear repierced? I kind of dig those old pictures of you.”

Anders snorted and grinned, “I’m glad you think my rebellious stage was hot. I’ll think about repiercing, love.”

He then pulled out the last thing from the velvet pouch, to which Hawke stood up. Anders looked down at what was in his hand with a bewildered expression.

“What is this, some sort of collar? I can’t fit into this,” He said, his eyebrows furrowed.

Spencer made a dash for storage closet. He had the last present stashed in there. He made sure it had plenty of water and food before he went to bed last night, as well as litter. Hopefully it didn’t eat through the box during that time.

He pulled out the cardboard carrier, to which it immediately started mewling. He carefully walked out into the living room and presented the box to his boyfriend. Anders stared at it with wide eyes, before up at Spencer.

“T-this is…for me?”

“Yes, love. Merry Christmas.”

Anders got on his knees and opened the carrier, peeking in. He let out a sharp gasp and then a squeal. He reached in and pulled out an orange kitten wrapped in a large, red bow. It mewed angrily and glared around, before its eyes settled on Anders.

“You’re so cute, little baby! Oh, what should I name you?” He cooed, rubbing his face against the soft kitten fur.

The kit began to purr, rubbing its face against Anders.

“Oh, I know, I’ll call you Ser-Pounce-a-lot!” He exclaimed triumphantly, scratching underneath its chin happily. He set the kitten down and stood up, his smile radiant.

"Ser-pounce-a-lot? You couldn't have just called it Fluffy, love?" Hawke teased.

Anders ignored him, “Thank you, Spencer. I’m so happy. I love you,” He took the few steps forward and embraced his lover, giving him kisses all over his face. Hawke returned the embrace and buried his nose in Anders’ hair with a sigh.

“All right, I want you to open your presents now, love.”

Hawke’s gifts included a new pair of winter boots, a new leash for Havoc, the huge stuffed dog that had a striking resemblance to Havoc, and a couple things that Spencer wasn’t allowed to open till ‘later’ (“If you know what I mean, love. ;)”).

“Don’t worry, I’ll teach you how to use them. They can be fun if you know how they work,” Anders purred, his hand on Spencer’s thigh.

Hawke nervously looked away, his face bright red, he spotted a small presents he hadn’t opened yet. He picked it up and looked it over.

“Hold on, before you open that, I want you to check the kitchen,” Anders said with a grin.

“The kitchen? I hope you didn’t make breakfast, love,” Hawke said, putting the gift back down. He stood up, almost stepping on the new kitten in the process. He entered the kitchen and the first thing that caught his eye was a piece of paper sitting on the charred oven. He approached it and picked up the paper. Giving it a read, he gasped. He stormed back into the living room, only to stop short.

“So, I know you’re angry that I got us a new oven, but I wanted to give you this,” Anders was still sitting, but he had a small velvet jewelry box popped open in front of him. He extended it towards Spencer with a small smile.

Hawke’s breath caught in his throat and he took a few cautious steps forward to get a better look at the ring inside. It was a simple silver ring, one that could probably go with any outfit Hawke picked out.

“It’s a promise ring. And I know usually boys give those to girls and all that crap, but I want to give it to you because I’m making you a promise,” Anders stood up and took the ring out of the box. He then proceeded to take Spencer’s hand.

As he slid it on, he looked up at Hawke and said, “I promise that I won’t ever leave you, Spencer Hawke. And one day…I will marry you.”

Spencer’s breath caught in his throat and he looked down at the ring, on the verge of sobbing uncontrollably. He nodded quickly, “I love you, Anders.”

“I love you too.”


	25. Part Two of Writer's Choice!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had originally asked my younger brother to give me the prompt for Writer's choice, but I didn't want to not write about Christmas day. So, this is what he wanted me to write about. The prompt is: Giving back to the community/giving to those less fortunate.
> 
> Follow me on tumblr! [ Hello!](http://lovelylittlekitten.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Also, if you want to dive deeper into the relationship and history of Spencer and Anders, go over and read [My Life in a Nutshell: A Spencer Hawke Novel](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8284988/chapters/18979841). I'm going to be updating the story now that I'm finished with this!

### Chapter Twenty-Five: _Part two of Writer’s choice!_

“It’s bloody cold out,” Anders shivered against Hawke’s side, looking down at his boots then back up to where they were walking.

“I know, I know that. If you’d walk a bit faster, we could get there faster,” Spencer retorted, picking up his pace slightly.

“I’m sorry, love, I’m just…tired, is all,” He mumbled, jogging to catch back up with his lover.

A glitter around Anders’ neck caught Hawke’s eye, and he turned his head slightly to catch the sight of a gold necklace clasped around Anders' neck. A warm feeling spread through his body and he felt a bit less cold walking with his boyfriend. He glanced down at the silver ring on his finger with a small smile.

“This is really heavy, love, what exactly did you put in here?” Anders peered into the box.

“Old clothes, some canned food, non-perishables, my old boots, some toys,” He listed off a few things he had decided to grab before they made the short trip up here.

“And you do this every year?”

“Yep. I know it sounds a bit weird, but after dealing with all the crap I did when I was younger, I know that these people deserve every luxury we have,” He said, seeing the exact place he wanted to go too. He went up the couple of stairs and opened the door for Anders. A rush of warm air ran over him from inside.

Anders thanked him and went inside with Spencer on his heels. Inside was a simple cafeteria, with one woman standing up front behind a podium.

“Hello there, Spencer. I didn’t expect to see you,” The woman greeted with a warm smile directed to him.

“What do you mean? I usually always come on Christmas, and sometimes even before then if I collect enough stuff,” He said, tilting his head.

Anders stood next to his boyfriend awkwardly, holding the box in his hands.

“Well, Bethany and Carver already dropped off donations. I thought you just put all your things with them,” She explained.

“Nope, you know they’re adults now. I’m just glad they kept the tradition,” Hawke grinned with pride, before gesturing towards the box he had set down as well as Anders, “This is all my donations. I hope you can use most of it.”

“I don’t see why we couldn’t, all your donations were used up at Thanksgiving no problem,” She beamed at him, before calling for someone on the intercom, “Do you plan on staying for dinner? I know you like to see people get the items you donated.”

“If you’ll allow me, I know you have a lot of people the day after Christmas,” Hawke said as two burly men came up and took the boxes.

“Of course, you and your friend can stay for dinner. We were just about to open. Tonight, we’re having meatloaf, mash potatoes, green beans, mac and cheese, and biscuits,” She informed them as she beckoned towards the dining area.

“Thank you, Ashleigh, it was nice to see you,” Spencer gave her a quick hug, before leading Anders to a table.

“So, what do you think so far?” Hawke questioned when they sat down.

“It’s… well, it makes me happy that someone will get to use our old things. Let’s hope the food is good,” Anders said with a smile.

Soon after, a steady stream of people began to come in. Most of them were homeless, or poverty stricken. Lots had kids or babies that needed food. It always made Spencer’s heart tighten when he saw a lone mother with a baby, loading her plate full with food because she didn’t know when she could get another decent meal. Or an old man on his last limbs, his hands shaking as he gets food, and wearing dirty rags because he can’t get a job at his age.

Other people looked like middle class, ones that probably had jobs, and they just came in for a hot meal before work. 

“May I sit here?” A woman in her late 60’s asked them politely, pointing a trembling hand to the seat next to Hawke. Spencer smiled warmly up at her and nodded, scooting the seat out for her.

“I don’t know if you remember me, but during Thanksgiving, you gave me a brand new jacket and a pair of your old boots. It really helped me during the cold months in Kirkwall, and I still wear the boots,” The woman said, her face wrinkling into a wide smile.

Spencer nodded and reached over to take her hand, nodding, “I’m so glad I could help. I know it’s not the same as getting money or somewhere to live…”

“Hush you, little things mean a lot too, young man. I probably would have died from the cold without the clothes you gave me. Now, why don’t we eat and enjoy ourselves?” The old woman let out a laugh and they began to eat, making small talk here and there.

After they ate, Ashleigh asked if Anders and Spencer would help pass out all the donations they received this week. Hawke agreed happily, and so did Anders.

There wasn’t a very long line for donations, only the homeless and the people who weren’t afraid to take donations were in line. Hawke opened the boxes and began to pass out things, giving the children toys. Most just needed food and clothes to last them until the soup kitchen opened again, or until they could make it on their own. It was an endearing experience, and Hawke was so glad he could do something he loved with Anders. His boyfriend even seemed to enjoy what they were doing, shaking hands with the men, giving hugs to women and children. It made Spencer fall even more in love with him.

Finally, it was over, the boxes were almost empty and the line was no longer. They left once Ashleigh thanked them and closed up shop.

“So, how was it?” Hawke asked as they were walking back to the apartment.

Anders glanced over at Spencer, reaching over and taking his hand with a squeeze.

“At first, I was a little weary over the whole situation. I had never been to a soup kitchen before, I didn’t even know they accepted donations. I honestly thought it was going to be really sad with homeless men and women mulling about and giving us dirty looks. I was a little nervous as well. But, when that older lady sat down next to you and thanked you for the stuff you gave her, I just…I realized that they were just normal people trying to get by. I felt happy to hand out our donations and see the smiles on children’s faces and their grateful parents. Or just handing gloves and a jacket to an elderly person made me feel really helpful, I guess?”

Hawke smiled and nodded, “It makes me so glad that you enjoy it, Anders. I know it can be depressing sometimes to see how bad it is for some people, but giving them something they needed is always worthwhile in the end, you know?”

“Yeah, I guess it is.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it! I'm finally done with it! How have you lasted this long, I'm honestly surprised! We had a rough start, with delays and such, but I got it done. I really REALLY hoped you all enjoyed and come back to read this every Christmas for a little bit of Spencer/Anders and Penelope/Fenris. 
> 
> Don't be shy to leave kudos/comments, even if it's in the middle of June! Christmas is not limited to the month of December!
> 
> I also have a wonderful picture that annajiejie drew for me during a daficswap. It's of Penelope and Fenris! Go have a look! [Woop!](http://annajiejie.tumblr.com/post/155275614195/my-last-holiday-swap-for-the-season-this-one-is)


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